The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Opposition

  • Nigeria needs a viable opposition

    SIR: I wish to appreciate Asiwaju Bola Ammed Tinubu and General Muhammadu Buhari for availing Nigerians the opportunity for a viable opposition in the past few years, and also to congratulate them on the well-deserved victory of their party, the APC, in the just concluded general elections. Nigerians say they have done well.

    But most importantly, I want to also utilize this avenue to appeal to the PDP to stand up to this onerous task of affording Nigerians a viable and virile opposition from May 29, and to  stop this unnecessary blame game going on among its fold. The blame game is not necessary. What Nigerians are simply appealing for is for PDP to ‘give us this day a viable opposition’. As the saying goes, ‘power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.’ An absolute power is that power that is not put to check. The PDP cannot afford to fail Nigerians on this all-important task. It is as important as being the government.  The fact that PDP is not going to be the party at the centre come May 29, does not mean it has totally been rejected by Nigerians. If Nigeria has, for instance, 40 million eligible voters, and just above 27 million voted in the last presidential election, then we can say that 13 million Nigerian voters are yet undecided as to which camp to belong, so whatever the PDP does now would determine if the party can ever again regain its political loss. It is not the time for casting aspersions but rather a time for self-appraisal, and re-organization. It is very important because Nigeria cannot afford a one-party state.

    I also wish to also appeal to the in-coming government of General Muhammadu Buhari to give the necessary impetus to the opposition parties in Nigeria and never to see opposition as inimical to his government but rather as a spring board for his government success. In a time like this when the nation is expecting so much due to the over-hyped ‘change’ slogan of the APC, critics are more important than praise singers. This starts with the way his government handles the affairs of regions which voted against him in the last election. Every region deserves fairness from this government. People who voted against him on the basis of party allegiance are not to be considered enemies. They are even more to be trusted than those whose hobby is to jump from one party to another.

    • Ohimai Daniel,

     

  • Centrality of Opposition to stability, sustainability of democracy

    Centrality of Opposition to stability, sustainability of democracy

    The climax of democratic consolidation on the African Continent has, generally speaking, taken place in the de-jure transitions from single party rule, where incumbent regimes monopolised nearly every facet of political and economic life, to a system of plural politics where alternative parties were legally permitted to organise and challenge the existing political order. For many of the incumbent parties on the continent as well as international donors, multiparty elections were and still are considered to be the clearest expression of a ‘new’ liberal political order and the pinnacle of democratic decision-making. However, the majority of those that follows and conducts research on the African political scene point out that the emergence of opposition political parties and multiparty elections is an insufficient measure of democracy, whereby most African states appear to be in the midst of a stalled transition (Whitehead, 2000).

    This textbook offers a new perspective on political opposition in contemporary African democracies. After a critical review of the classic and contemporary literature on the subject, it proposes a renewed definition of opposition that better grasps the complexity of political opposition in democracies. In addition, the textbook proposes setting a new agenda for future research on political opposition. The book is structured around a number of topics which are considered to be pertinent to the analysis of opposition parties and the current intellectual debate on opposition political parties in Africa in general and Nigeria in particular.

    Following no particular order of choice, chapter one of this book by Salihu Niworu set the tone by assessing opposition party in the face of primitive accumulation in Nigeria. The chapter discusses succinctly how the ruling party utilizes the poverty and quest for material accumulation of the opposition parties to entrench their dominance in the political system. The author notes that after a decade of democratization in Nigeria, the dominant political party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has not shown any concrete index of meeting the aspirations of the Nigerian people.

    He therefore calls for vibrant opposition to checkmate the excessiveness of the ruling party. Chapter two by Elegunlusi focuses on the philosophy of opposition political party and development in Nigeria. The author adopts historical methods in discussing opposition parties and their involvement in national politics. He notes that even though opposition parties are important in tackling the crisis of development in democratic African societies, their existence is mostly threatened by African ruling governments. He also argues that in situations where governmental policies are left unchallenged, the socio-economic and political situations of the country will not advance.

    From a philosophical perspective, Bartholomew Onyekwere examines opposition party and the quest for good governance in Nigeria. In it, the author shows that in countries that have entrenched democratic culture, there are civilized ways of employing the principle of checks and balances in the democratic dispensation and that one common way of doing it is through the practice of party opposition. He critically examines the various contributions of opposition activities since Nigeria’s independence and that opposition practice in Nigeria has made valuable contributions to the effect that the ruling party has had to be careful when formulating policies.

    Aderonke Majekodunmi’s contribution centers on opposition parties and good governance in Africa. The author shows that the issue of good governance is at the heartof developmental and political discourse in Africa and that the indispensable role of opposition parties in protecting the interests and rights of citizens, monitoring government and ultimately in good governance cannot be over-emphasized.

    The author locates the function of opposition in good governance. She notes that opposition have had very limited opportunity to contribute positively to the process of democratic governance in the continent. In chapter five, Michael Oni and Emmanuel Oluwole, succinctly focuses on opposition parties as opposition to good governance in Nigeria. The authors note that in developed polity, opposition parties ensure that the government in power is on its toes and that opposition parties in these polities are regarded as alternative government or government in the waiting. This is because they are virile, organized and coherent to pose threats and challenge misrule of the government in power. However, this is not the case in Nigeria where opposition parties are in disarray, unorganized and not potent enough to serve as government in the waiting. As a way out, they advocate that opposition parties need to close ranks to serve as alternative government in order to ensure that the government in power sits tight to offer good governance to the people.

    Adeola Gabriel discusses how robust opposition political party is a necessary institution for democratic stability in Nigeria. For him, the essence of opposition party is a necessary regulation to curtail the tyranny of majority ruling party. The author argues pertinently for the institution of a strong, powerful and robust opposition political party as a necessary checks and balances to the ruling party, the stability of the political system, the sustainability and progress of Nigerian society. He believes that the absence of a robust opposition political party will hinder pluralism which is necessary in enhancing proliferation of opinions and beliefs that characterize a stable social order. Blessing Thom-Otuya and Goddey Wilson focus on opposition political party and democratization in Nigeria.

    The authors are of the opinion that the activities of opposition parties have significant impact on democratic activities in Nigeria. As a result, attempts were made in the chapter to examine the challenges and various ways of strengthening opposition party in Nigeria. Opposition political parties and democratic consolidation in Nigeria’s fourth republic is the focus of chapter eight. The author argues that good governance cannot be achieved in Nigeria without the opposition challenging unpopular policies and constant demand for accountability from the ruling party. The chapter concludes by underscoring the need for the various opposition parties to work together rather than against one another. This is imperative in order to build strong opposition to the ruling party as well as offer better options towards democratic consolidation in the country.

  • Akenzua: we can’t be in opposition

    Akenzua: we can’t be in opposition

    Benin Leaders of Thought Convener,  Prince Edun Akenzua, the Enogie of Obazuwa, has urged Edo people not  to heed the counsel of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to vote Edo State into mainstream politics.

    Prince Akenzua, in a communiqué at the end of an emergency meeting, said their decision was in line with the request by PDP chieftains that the state should be voted out of opposition to the Federal Government.

    He noted that it was time for the people to think more about the interest of the state than that of a political party.

    “Captain Hosa went on his knees, pleading fervently that the Enigie should recognise the imperative of getting out of the opposition to the Federal Government.

    “He said he was not interested in partisan politics but that it gave him pain to see Edo State, particularly Benin, not getting what it ought to get from the Federal Government because it is in opposition.

    “Benin Leaders of Thought calls on the Bini to heed the wise counsel freely given by Captain Hosa, Pastor Ize-Iyamu and Mr. Lucky Imasuen not to put themselves in opposition to the Federal Government.

    “We have to vote sensibly this time. We know how much Edo people suffered when the state was in opposition. They came to plead with the Enigie and we have decided to obey them,” Prince Akenzua said.

    The Enogie urged the people to vote for all All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates so that the state does not find itself in opposition.

     

     

     

  • Otuoke…Where there is no opposition

    Otuoke…Where there is no opposition

    Senior Correspondent JOSEPH JIBUEZE, who covered the presidential election in Otuoke, the president’s hometown, relives his experience.

    It is not difficult to imagine the mood in Otuoke when the presidential election result was announced. Many in the small town would have shed tears.

    Before the election, indigenes of the town, where President Goodluck Jonathan hails from, were eager to receive him. They believed their brother and son would be re-elected. Their hope may have been buoyed by the fact that the opposition is virtually absent in Otuoke. Nearly everyone belongs to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    I was eager to visit president’s town. I considered it a wonderful opportunity to have been sent to cover the election there. The Ijaw, Niger-Delta town is about 21 kilometres south of Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, and 120 kilometres west of the famous seaport of Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

    The town is not populous (said to be less than 10,000), and it is not your usually bubbly city. Apart from the Federal University Otuoke, the town is just like any other village struggling to transform into a mini-city. There are no street lights leading to the town and business is slow. There are several commercial motorcycle operators on the road.

    I arrived Otuoke on Thursday, and was driven to the town by this newspaper’s Bayelsa correspondent Mike Odiegwu, who also showed me around. Everywhere was calm. I expected to find armed soldiers or riot policemen on the streets, but there were not. People went about their business.

    The residents I spoke to all expressed confidence that President Jonathan would win. They seemed to love him. Around the town posters and banners of President Jonathan and his running mate Vice-President Namadi Sambo hung at various locations.

    There was increased security in the town on Friday. Two Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) were seen on the Otuoke Road, one in front of the president’s house. The other was parked in front of Magels Resort, a hotel close to a commercial bank, the only one in Otuoke. A police chopper hovered.

    Then the D-Day came. Voting materials have arrived late at Unit 39, where the president voted. The materials were brought to the unit in Ogbia Ward 12 by 8.24am. By 9am, electoral officers were still sorting out and arranging the materials.

    Journalists, including foreign ones, arrived the venue much earlier, awaiting the electoral officers’ arrival. No fewer than 50 journalists were in Otuoke to cover President Jonathan voting.

    There was an awkward moment when the card readers malfunctioned as the president waited to be accredited. The president arrived at about 9.20am, but stood for over 45 minutes. Electoral officers battled to make the card readers work, but to no avail. At least three card readers failed.

    The president continued to smile as he stood waiting for the machines to work, but none did. Only his mother and his ADC were accredited using the card reader. The president stood till about 10.05 am when he addressed the media. Tired, his wife Dame Patience Jonathan sat down, fanning herself.

    The president chided the electoral officers for not starting the accreditation on time. He told the presiding officer: “I decided to come in a little late. I don’t need to be the first person to be accredited. You should have started before now. By 8am you should have started.” It was the first time I would stand so close to the President.

    After his mother was successfully accredited, he spoke to her in their local dialect, apparently urging her to keep her PVC and a piece of paper given to her intact.

    President Jonathan’s ADC handed him a phone, and he was overheard saying: “Chairman, have you been briefed about…? Across the country what’s the situation?”

    When he addressed the press, he urged Nigerians to be patient, saying: “If I can endure – you can see me sweating, then I plead with all Nigerians to be patient. No matter the pains we take, as long as we as a nation can conduct free and fair elections that the world will accept, that is what we should all think about, not the temporary pains individuals may pass through.”

    There was a large turnout of voters in Otuoke going by the population. Long queues were seen at the various polling units. It was learnt that 675 people registered in the president’s unit.

    After the president voted, Otuoke soon emptied. He left the town in a motorcade to Yenagoa about an hour later, enroute Abuja. Voting continued into the night, but result was never announced in the president’s polling unit.

    I was eager to send a report of what he polled in his unit, but I never got it. When the last person on the queue voted, the electoral officer announced that counting would begin, but a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) agent who gave her name as S. Otazi, complained that several people were yet to vote.

    The electoral officer then stopped the counting and returned the ballot papers to the boxes. There was no opposition; there were no complaints. No electoral observer was present, and no other party agent could be seen. No one demanded that result must be announced.

    At about 8.30pm, the electoral officer said the unit, in front of President Jonathan’s country home, was becoming unsafe and that they were relocating to a “safer place”. She and other polling officials packed the voting materials and were driven away.

    When I contacted Mrs Otazi on phone by 10: 59pm on Saturday, she kindly confirmed that results had not been announced. I later learnt that voting might continue until Sunday.

    On Sunday morning, I went to the president’s unit, but it was deserted. However, electoral officers and ad-hoc staff, mainly National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, gathered at the Dame Patience Jonathan Square which had three polling units (17, 18 and 40).

    I asked and was told that voters were still being expected. But I did not see anyone voting. No queue. The Electoral officers who manned the president’s unit had changed location and were at the Square on Sunday.

    I spent about 30 minutes at the square but saw no one come to vote although ballot boxes were on display. There were no electoral observers present; only policemen, the electoral officers and PDP agents.

    Then there was a mild drama. Two people, a man and a woman, who I assumed were PDP agents, approached me and sought to know who I was and what I was doing. I was not surprised because people were also glancing at my direction.

    When I told them I was a journalist, the man said: “You can’t be here. There’s supposed to be restriction of movement. You’re only supposed to be here if you wish to vote. The result may not be announced here. Your presence here is making them uncomfortable.”

    In a mild threat, and which made me suspicious, he said: “You had better leave before they begin to think you’re an agent of the opposition.” The lady with her glared at me, and narrowed her eyes to see what I was doing with my smart phone.

    When I contacted INEC’s spokesman in Bayelsa Mr Timidi Wariowei on phone, he said he was not aware that results had not been announced in Otuoke. He also started questioning me when told him that electoral officers claimed that voting was still going on Sunday.

    He said: “There were some polling units that election did not hold on Saturday, and  a few units where election is going on, but it’s not a continuation of Saturday’s election.”

    When I told him that electoral officers were still in Otuoke, he sounded angry, saying: “You’re saying you didn’t see anybody voting, and you said election was going on! Please I don’t like this kind of story!” And he hung up.

    I sent him a text message asking him to confirm if results from the units in Otuoke had been announced, but Wariowei never responded.

    What transpired at the polling units in Otuoke no longer matters. Gen. Muhamadu Buhari has been announced as the winner and Jonathan has conceded defeat and congratulated his opponent. But it was still a wonderful experience visiting the president’s home.

     

  • Now that Ndigbo are in opposition

    I wrote not too long ago on this space asking whether Ndigbo would sink and swim with President Goodluck Jonathan and some readers came at me like rabid dogs. Some even labeled me outcast. Who is the outcast now? Who is the greatest loser in the unfolding political arithmetic of Nigeria? Just like PDP, Ndigbo too have become political Humpty Dumpty, the silly, big egg that has suffered a shameful fall.

    Going forward, and if they manage to gather themselves together, they will be more pragmatic in their political calculations and eschew excessive sentimentality. They will also have to do away with most of their leaders who think with their stomach and who have no clarity about tomorrow.

    It is just as well that for once in our political lives, we are operating from the opposition camp. So much for years of opportunism, whoredom and romance with just any government in power; now we have to work for our keep, make our own case and determine how we want to play the field. Again, perhaps this is the treatment we need in order to wise up in the politics of this land.

  • Oyo opposition are paperweight, says APC

    Oyo opposition are paperweight, says APC

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has said the dismissal outing of opposition parties in the state has shown them as paperweight parties.

    The party, in a statement in Ibadan yesterday by its state Director of Publicity and Strategy, Olawale Sadare, thanked the people for keeping faith with the party as demonstrated by the victory in last Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections.

    It added that the voting pattern of the last elections clearly showed their belief and support for the APC-led administration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi as well as their political sophistication.

    “Besides, the outcome of the elections has shown that the people will never again fall for the bait of propaganda, deceit, falsehood, character assassination and reactionary politics for which the leading opposition parties’ candidates are known.

    “Now that the people of Oyo State have, again shown, their preference for the APC, we strongly advise the followers of Teslim Folarin (PDP), Rashidi Ladoja (Accord) and Adebayo Alao-Akala (LP) to review their stance and jump out of the turbulent ship in order not to sink with them.”

    The APC said the showing of the LP in some parts of Ogbomoso attests to the party’s position that the ex-governor is a local champion.

    “With the outcome of the election, Ladoja and his Accord Party should, by now, resign to fate that the people have finally rejected them.

    “Again, the people of Oyo State and supporters of the Accord should realise that it is not in their best interest to support the party which neither has root nor foundation capable of protecting their interest at the state and national levels,’’ it said.

    The party appealed to the people to embrace the broom revolution sweeping across the country, particularly in the Southwest, by supporting the APC and its candidate, Abiola Ajimobi, for the April 11 Governorship and House of Assembly elections.

  • ‘Opposition is govt in the waiting’

    For over 90 minutes, the hall on the 5th floor of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s building at Alausa in Ikeja, Lagos was still scanty. The presidential candidate of KOWA Party, Prof Remi Sonaiya and two reporters were among the early arrivals. But for the continuous screening of documentaries of the formal opening of the old Western Nigeria Television (WNTV) at Ibadan on October 31, 1959 and the Independence Day celebration party that kept them glued to the screen behind the high table, the few guests would have been tired of the long wait.

    Except Prof Sonaiya, who was present, most of the special guests invited to the book presentation, Opposition political parties and democratisation in Africa, edited by Gabriel Lanre Adeola, sent representatives. They included former Ekiti State Governor Dr Kayode Fayemi, All Progressives Congress (APC) vice presidential candidate Prof Yemi Osinbajo and Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji.

    Expectedly, the occasion shifted slightly into a campaign platform, with speakers  telling the audience of the need to have their permanent voter cards and vote wisely to be part of  change. They also warned the youths, in the audience of a bleak future because of the dwindling fortune of the nation’s commonwealth.

    Osinbajo and Fayemi called on  youths to join the train of change in the nation’s political space by showing interest on who leads them. They also enjoined them not to shy away from exercising their civic rights in the forthcoming general elections.

    Osinbajo, who was represented by Abimbola Ojerinde, said the youth must brace to face the reality of the state of the economy, which is in a poor shape.  “Certainly, there is nothing waiting for you after school because the nation’s economy has continued to hit an all-time low. Exchange rate has also gone high with the devaluation of the naira. In fact, there is problem in the land and we have emergency situation on our hands. We cannot pretend about it,” he added.

    He noted that the forthcoming general election is very critical to Nigeria just as the conversation on the political leadership of the country has changed with the coming of the APC as an opposition. He added that governance is about the common good of the people.

    Fayemi, who was represented by Akin Rotimi, said for the first time Nigerian voters are taken seriously by the politicians, especially the ruling party, which is battling to remain in power at all cost. He said the Nigerian voting space would not be the same again. “Nigeria is an eyesore and until there is a change of power, we will not realise it because the mess is being covered up. It is important to have a change at the centre, it is also critical to have a change in other levels of governance. So, everyone of us must be involved in the change,” he added.

    KOWA Party presidential candidate, Prof Remi Sonaiya, who decried the increasing attacks by politicians on one another, said if there was ever a time on how parties should conduct their affairs, the time is now.

    “Given what is happening in the political space it seems we are not sure how party in power should behave and how opposition party should behave too. I hope Nigerians are taking note and it is when citizens are fed up that they can effect a change. When we keep absorbing all the cheats thrown at us, there will be no desire for change,” she said, describing the book as one good step towards a better political development.

    Adeola described the book as an inspiration and would serve as eye-opener to Africa democratisation experience. He said the book offers a new perspective on political opposition in contemporary African democracies. “After a critical review of the classic and contemporary literature on the subject, it proposes a renewed definition of opposition that better grasps the complexity of political opposition in democracies,” he said.

    He recalled that he got the desire to put the book together when he returned to Nigeria from France and discovered a gap the book could fill. “The articles I gather together covered all aspects of opposition. They were written by 42 scholars from 26 universities. In fact, given the content, the book will surely assist the politicians. But, the message is what is opposition? It is government in the waiting. If I had written the articles alone, I won’t have been able to cover enough grounds. Nigeria needs a change,” Adeola added.

  • PDP now operates as opposition party

    The ruling party in this country, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), would create history and also be listed in The Guinness Book of Records as a party in power but operating as opposition.

    After the election of 2011, no sane person would believe the self-acclaimed largest party in Africa would find itself in this tight corner of defending most of the policies and programmes of the party with difficulty.

    It’s a well known fact, that before, if you were contesting under PDP in any platform you could go to sleep because victory was assured in any election. However, that has changed for now.

    With the coming of All Progressives Congress (APC) as a legitimate opposition party, the ruling party has been having sleepless nights on how to go about to convince Nigerians to elect the party in this coming election.

    PDP, as a political party, in spite of being in government and with its war chest, is finding it difficult to sell itself to Nigerians unlike what we all saw in the past before any election.

    The recent campaign undertaken by the party across the country has exposed the struggle of the ruling party to stay afloat and be relevant in the scheme of things in this country.

    The party is so divided that in most of its campaigns it has always been alleged of buying crowd to attend. The stoning and destruction of posters and bill boards by the same PDP members have been seen in places like Bauchi, Kastina, Taraba and all PDP states; it shows the centre can no longer hold for the ruling party this time around.

    As the general elections of March 28 and April 11, 2015 draw near, what would be the fate of a ruling party that is gradually turning into an opposition party?

    We keep our fingers crossed.

     

    •By Bala Nayashi

    Lokoja, Kogi State.

  • As PDP turns opposition party

    SIR: The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is on the verge of creating the record of being the first party that while still holding power in the centre, is in panic thereby behaving like an opposition party.

    After the elections of 2011, no rational person would believe that the acclaimed largest party in Africa would find itself in this tight corner of defending, with difficulty, most of its policies and programs.

    It is, until now, trite that if a candidate is contesting under PDP, such a candidate can go to sleep but that has changed now. Victory is no longer certain for members of the ruling party.

    The coming of All Progressives Congress (APC), as a formidable opposition to the ruling party, has made politics more interesting but exhilarating to PDP. The ruling party is finding it difficult to sell itself, again, to the people of this country despite its widely perceived unbeatable war chest. The people no longer want money but realistic development.

    The recent campaign that saw the ruling party went round the country really

    exposed the struggle within it to stay afloat and be relevant in the scheme of things in this land.

    The party is now so seriously divided as underscored in most of its campaigns where people were hired to attend after being induced with money. The stoning of the President Jonathan and other candidates of the ruling party and the destruction of posters and bill boards of the party by the same PDP members became rampant in states like Bauchi, Kastina and Taraba showing that the centre can no longer hold for the ruling party this time around.

    As the general elections of 28th March and 11th April, 2015 draw nearer, what fate waits the ruling party that is gradually turning into the opposition party? Let us keep our fingers crossed!

     

    • Bala Nayashi,
  • Card reader: PDP’s opposition proved us right, says APC

    Card reader: PDP’s opposition proved us right, says APC

    THE Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) opposition to use of card readers in the rescheduled elections has proved the All Progressives Congress (APC) accusations right that the ruling party is trying to either prevent the polls from holding or to rig it.

    APC’s National Publicity Secretary Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who said this in a statement in Lagos yesterday, added that it was curious that the PDP rushed to the media to deny the allegations and then quickly turned around to confirm them.

    The statement reads: “At the press conference we addressed on Wednesday, which rattled the PDP and the Jonathan administration so much, we listed the conditionalities of the PDP/Jonathan administration for holding the election: no Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), no card readers, no Prof. Attahiru Jega and the fact that they want the military deployed to harass and intimidate voters.

    ‘’We mentioned ‘card readers’ at least three times during the press conference, and said they (PDP/Jonathan administration) are doing everything possible to sabotage the machine and prevent its use.

    ‘’Both the spokesmen for the PDP and the Jonathan Campaign Organisation rushed to the press to deny any such ‘reprehensible’ plan. But a few hours later, the spokesman for the campaign organisation told an incredulous country that they would oppose the use of card reader, apparently after the spokesmen were overruled by their party.

    “Obviously, these men are outsiders in their own party and it is now obvious that the opposition knows more about the inner workings of their party than they do.”

    APC said in an apparently-choreographed show, some 15 portfolio political parties called a news conference to also announce that they will oppose use of the card reader, vowing to boycott the elections and use a legal process to prevent use of the machine.

    The party noted that the syndicated threats were the latest indications of the mortal fear in the corridors of power about the machine that had now become the nemesis of election riggers and manipulators worldwide.

    Contrary to the claim by the PDP, the APC noted that Nigerians were ready for free, fair and credible elections to be made possible by the use of the card reader, adding that the citizenry would massively resist any move to dump the machine.

    “Nigerians have sacrificed all they can to obtain their PVCs, which are now their most-prized possession. They have also hailed the plan by INEC to use the card reader to give Nigeria credible polls.

    “Only dishonest politicians, those who plan to rig, those who have engaged in a massive purchase of PVCs and those who have something to hide are opposed to use of the machine.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, our party is ready for any tool, including the card reader, that will ensure that the votes of Nigerians will count in the election. In this regard, we sincerely hope that the nationwide tests of the card reader to be carried out this week by INEC will not be sabotaged by those opposed to the machine.

    “The card reader has been demonstrated to work, including at the Senate, and no one must come out to tell Nigerians anything to the contrary.

    “The huge investments in providing PVCs for Nigerians will not be worthwhile if the cards would not be authenticated by card readers, which, by the way, have been used in other countries, all of them less endowed than Nigeria, in Africa,” APC said.

    It added that it was taking the elections very serious and closely monitoring every move of those who do not want the elections to hold, “or if they must hold at all, only on their terms”.

    The statement noted that the APC was aware of an all-night meeting (Wednesday/Thursday) between a Southwest governor and security chiefs on how to rig the rescheduled polls in the geo-political zone. But, the party said it remained convinced that no one was powerful enough to stop an idea, whose time has come.

    APC thanked Nigerians, both within and outside the government, for their efforts in keeping a close eye on those planning to sabotage the polls, imploring the citizenry not to relent “since eternal vigilance is the price of freedom”.