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Tag: shift

  • INEC’s reasons for polls’ shift untenable, says Buhari

    INEC’s reasons for polls’ shift untenable, says Buhari

    APC presidential flag bearer speaks on issues of national interest in an interview aired yesterday on Al Jazeera International Television Network 

    Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Gen Muhammadu Buhari yesterday described the reasons given by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to shift the February 14 and 28 elections as untenable

    He said INEC Chairman Prof Attahiru Jega had ealier given details the body’s activities since the general elections of 2011 to the National Council of State and assured that his commission was ready for the elections as originally scheduled.

    The APC standard bearer in a chat monitored last night on Al Jazeera International Television Network

    Buhari said: “If they say the military cannot secure 14 local government areas out of 774 local governments in six years, how can we be sure they can secure those 14 council areas in six weeks?”

    Expressing Nigeria’s gratitude to its neighbours for eventually agreeing to secure its territory, Buhari wondered what went wrong with the nation’s military that earned global accolades in the past for excelling in peace-keeping missions.

    He said:  “But as far as informed Nigerians are concerned, there is corruption in government, where is the vote for the military? Where is the money for equipment and training going to?”

    The former Head of State, however, urged Nigerians to give INEC the benefit of the doubt to carry out its rescheduled programmes since the constitution allowed for such.

    His words: “We are all going to appeal to our supporters to give to INEC the chance, because there is 30 days limit for the swearing-in of new government and before that time, election must be conducted.

    “So, there will be no more room for maneuver as far as we are concerned. I hope the military, the ruling party and INEC will accept this is the limit provided by the constitution.

    “We do not expect INEC to say they cannot conduct the elections. In any case, INEC briefed the National Council of State that they were ready to conduct the elections.

    “Now if they are approached by the military for whatever reason to consider addition six weeks before the elections start, we are going to accommodate that and abide by this. We urged our support to remain calm, to participate in the elections on the March 28 and April 11.”

    He added that if the troops deployed in Ekiti for the June, 2014 governorship election had been utilised to flush out Boko Haram, tangible results would have been recorded.

    Buhari said: “If deployed in the Northeast, they (troops) could have at least rescued the over 200 school girls who were abducted by the rebels or the Boko Haram from their dormitory since last year.

    “They know where they are, they still can give a cohesive reason whether they have the capacity to put an end to it.”

    According to Buhari, the government has failed to protect lives and property, noting that the numbers of soldiers deployed to rig election in favour of the ruling party could have been judiciously used to end insecurity in the country.

    Recalling the standing of the Nigerian military in external operations, Buhari noted that outstanding performances of the military during the Boma war and the uprising in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), earned the country the respect of the international community.

    He said when he was a military head of state, all the law that his administration enacted were meant to make the society better.

    He added that there was no secret trails f any suspect that contravened the law. He said there has been effort to undermine what they tried do as a government.

    “I was a military leader and part of the constitution was suspended to ensure that accountability is return to the Nigeria system.

    “We accepted part of the responsibilities; the concept of executing people was about the drugs. We said cocaine and associated drugs were not developed in Nigeria.

    “Those who want to make money at the expense of health and lives of the people would not be condoned. We were concerned and if people were to make money, they should go out and work hard.”

    He explained that his age has nothing to do with his ability to carry out his duties, stressing that he could move up his chosen career, it was as a result of the dedication put to his job.

  • ASUU to Nigerians: don’t get frustrated by shift

    ASUU to Nigerians: don’t get frustrated by shift

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has appealed to the citizens not to be frustrated by the polls’ shift, but to ensure they collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

    Its President, Dr. Nasir Fagge, in a phone interview, urged Nigerians to ensure they use the polls to usher in new leaders that are interested in the people and the nation’s development.

    Dr. Fagge noted that the challenge before Nigerians is how to ensure the emergence of a leadership with focus on the people and the nation’s institutions.

    The 1999 Constitution, according to him, is not the solution to Nigeria’s problems.

    He added that a new government should give the country a people-friendly constitution, which will not encourage people to steal, but guarantee equitable distribution of wealth and income.

    The ASUU president noted that this was necessary since insurgency and terrorism in Nigeria were the results of denial of people’s rights.

    Also yesterday, the Ibadan Zonal Coordinator of ASUU and Chairman of University of Ibadan chapter, Prof. Segun Ajiboye, said hiding under security ruse would not help pro-election postponement forces to frustrate the genuine efforts of Nigerians seeking change.

    He urged Nigerians not to agonise, but organise towards ensuring that the new set of leaders that will emerge in the country are those with genuine interest for the masses.

     

    “The decision is a serious setback for Nigerian democracy. But we should remain steadfast. This is time-buying game. It will not work. Let us organise and not agonise,” he said.

  • Mark: polls shift necessary to avoid anarchy

    Mark: polls shift necessary to avoid anarchy

    The Senate President, David Mark, has urged Nigerians to put the country first before any partisan consideration.

    Mark said this in a statement in Abuja following the postponement of the elections.

    He noted that no matter the political divide, “we all must take the path of caution in order not to jeopardise the process towards a successful exercise in the Nigerian project.”

    The Senate president cautioned against the noise trailing the shift in the conduct of the polls, saying: “It is a necessary step to avoid anarchy and chaos because of some shortcomings and insecurity fuelling the already charged atmosphere.”

    Mark, in the statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh, said: “To conduct a peaceful, free, fair and credible election that meets international best practices, unarguably demands that all stakeholders and participants be on the same wave length.

    “It is a process that must of necessity be followed religiously. Any of the steps not taken or subverted could produce a questionable result.

    “That is why, we must all be careful in what we do or say.”

     

  • Shift won’t save PDP, says Buhari campaign organisation

    Shift won’t save PDP, says Buhari campaign organisation

    Coordinator of the Lagos Office of the Buhari/Osinbajo Campaign Organisation, James Abiodun Faleke, has condemned the postponement of the general elections by six weeks as announced by Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega.

    The INEC chair cited security reasons to justify the shift in the dates for the national election from February 14 to March 28 and the state election from February 28 to April 11.

    Faleke said the postponement could endanger the nation’s budding democracy and diminish the reputation of Nigeria in the comity of nations.

    Faleke, who chairs the House of Representatives Committee on Anti-Corruption, National Ethics and Values, accused those who are afraid of defeat at the polls as the architects of the postponement.

    His words: “We condemn this shift in election dates. It is a sad development and a dangerous signal to the growth of democracy in Nigeria. The time-table was released more than a year ago. Why is it that a week to the presidential and National Assembly elections, INEC is just announcing the postponement?”

    The lawmaker accused the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of intimidating and blackmailing the electoral body into submission.

    “It is obvious that Nigerians will overwhelmingly reject the ruling party and its candidates at the polls. The Federal Government has seen the defeat of the party clearly and boldly written on the wall and it is now afraid of the rules it set for the game and decided to shift the goal post in the middle of the game,” Faleke said.

    He, however, stated that the PDP has only succeeded in pushing forward the doom’s day as six weeks cannot make up for the pains of six years. Nigerians are wiser and would not be fooled.

    “Let them postpone the elections. Nigerians are waiting for them. Nigerians are bonded in this struggle for change and they are determined to make it happen. Is it in six weeks that the PDP will correct the evils of 16 years?”

    “The plot is to weaken the opposition and give some respite for the ruling party. The PDP thinks the opposition will run out of steam because it is the only party that raised more than N20 billion to perpetuate itself in office.

    “What we are telling them is that the people’s will to effect a change is stronger than the federal might that the PDP has exerted INEC to shift the polls.

    “All agents of change must, however, remain steadfast and calm. They should avoid falling into the trap. The APC is determined to give Nigerians a new direction and a new lease of life from the rudderless leadership the PDP has offered for 16 years.”

    Faleke, who is the candidate of the APC for the Ikeja Federal Constituency, urged those who have gotten their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to take advantage of the shift window to do so.

  • No to poll shift

    SIR: The cacophonous clamour for the postponement of February 14 and 28 elections is a cancer that can destroy the very foundation of our dear nation. There are many posers for its proponents.

    What happens to the billions of naira committed to electioneering campaigns, media showcase, foot soldiering, and the energy dissipated to the forthcoming polls? It is corollary with the allegation of kleptomania leveled against the ruling party at the centre. Our already tainted image will further reek in the global community. The acclaimed giant of Africa continues to fumble in the electoral process and yet approaches the advanced democracies for a good handshake; it is akin to the demented leper chasing a sane man about for an embrace. The scene is better imagined that witnessed.

    On a football pitch, the referee holds the ace, no matter how deft the match commissioner claims to be he cannot change the goal posts in the middle of the game nor can he challenge  the  referee during the match. The insinuation that the ruling PDP is behind the plot is rife. The party and its co-travellers owe Nigeria, Nigerians and posterity a debt of explanations. When a man is trapped in a mesh the more he tries to disentangle himself the deeper he is cocooned. Ill wind blows nobody any good. The centripetal/centrifugal forces are covertly beckoning to anarchy. And civil war looms in the process. The crux of it all is how to prognosticate whether Nigeria will remain one UNITED country thereafter. Let us remember the warning of America that Nigeria will break in the year 2015.

    The council of state should not bite the bileduct; it is bitter and poisonous. June 12, 1993 and its attendant debacle remain indelible in our national psyche.

    To this end, Professor Atahiru Jega led INEC should be allowed to do its job and announce the winners for the covert benefit of the unborn generations.

     

    • Adelani Olawuyi

    Ogbomoso, Oyo State      

     

  • PDP’s desperate push for polls shift

    Towards the end of last year, the All Progressives Congress (APC) raised the alarm and alleged that there were subterranean moves by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the presidency and its cohorts to postpone the general elections scheduled for next month. Not many Nigerians took the APC’s allegation seriously, considering the level of allegations and counter-allegations between it and the PDP since its successful merger. Some assumed that it was part of campaign and politicking that will precede the election. But consistently APC repeatedly alerted Nigerians about plans by the PDP to shift the February elections. When the allegation was made, neither the PDP nor the Presidency refuted or acknowledged it. The duo maintained studied silence, pretending not being in the knowhow of the plan to postpone the election.

    True to the APC allegation, the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) recently canvassed for the postponement of the elections to give the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) time to distribute over 30 million outstanding Permanent Voter Cards to registered voters. Dasuki, according to report, said he had told the INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, that a postponement within the three months allowed by the law, would be a good idea. Before Dasuki spoke at the Chatham House, a London think-tank, supportive of the PDP had also advised that the elections should be shifted.

    Dasuki told participants at a talk in London that INEC which had distributed over 30 million cards late last year, had assured him that the outstanding PVCs would be given out before February 14, the first day of the elections. He however stated that he believed it would make more sense to shift the elections since the law provided a 90-day window during which elections could legally take place. “It costs you nothing, it’s still within the law,” Dasuki said, adding however that it was for INEC and not for him, to decide.

    There is no doubt that Dasuki’s call is a confirmation that the Presidency and the PDP were tinkering with idea of compelling or pushing INEC to postpone the elections as earlier alleged by APC. For the National Security Adviser in the PDP-led government to openly canvass for the shift of the polls calls for concern. It also raises question on the independence of the electoral commission ahead of the polls. It may not be out of place to suggest that the Presidency, PDP and their cohorts have infiltrated INEC to ensure that they have their way.

    Before Dasuki’s call, Adamawa State governor, Bala Ngilari made a similar call for the shift in the polls. The unison with which they chorused the shift is not only suspicious, but conspiratorial. Their reasons are not tenable because INEC had assured that the remaining permanent voters’ cards (PVCs) would be continuously distributed till February 13. It would also be recalled that in most of his campaign speeches, President Jonathan had always said that May 29 handover is sacrosanct, but has never mentioned that February polls are sacrosanct.

    Instead of calling and championing for the shift of the polls, the PDP and its allies should call for the use of the temporary voters’ cards for the elections as demanded by members of the House of Representatives during their last session. Hiding under the flimsy excuse that previous elections have been conducted in April to justify their position for the shift is hypocritical and questionable. If that is the case, why not call for the shift earlier than now to save the commission and Nigerians the waste of time and money?

    The report that PDP and Presidency are desperately trying to procure jankara court injunction to stop the polls and the APC presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd) from contesting it is not only worrisome, but illegal and undemocratic. If the report is true, it means that the country may be heading back to the days of June 12, 1993 political chaos. Nigerians should remind the PDP and its champions of poll shift about JP Clark’s poem titled “The Casualties.” As can be seen across the country, some sponsored groups have staged protests to INEC offices across the country including Abuja asking for the shift of the polls to allow Nigerians collect their PVCs. Actions and body languages of these groups are not quite different from what some PDP chieftains and their allies are asking for. So it is obviously the hand of Esau and voice of Jacob.

    The questions that should be troubling the mind of Nigerians are: why should PDP chieftains be asking for the shift of polls now and mounting pressure on INEC to disqualify Buhari on the ground of non-qualification? Presently, PDP is in dire need of peace, unity and cohesion following the intra-party crisis that had trailed the outcome of the party primaries across the country.

    From Ebonyi to Delta, Bauchi, Abia to Cross River and other states, there are obvious discontent and division within the party and the party chieftains know that such will hurt them in the elections if conducted as scheduled. It may not be out of place that the push for the poll shift by the PDP is to enable them put their houses in order and to further demonise the APC presidential candidate, Buhari through fabricated documentaries and spurious adverts. It seems they also need more time to spread false propaganda on President Jonathan’s unverifiable achievements in the last six years which Nigerians have called to question.

    Whichever way one looks at it, PDP chieftains’ push for poll shift smacks of desperation and lack of confidence in the ability of the party to win the general elections convincingly. If not, many Nigerians had expected that such call for shift should have emanated from the opposition party APC.

    Apart from the call for polls shift, PDP’s undue pressure on INEC to disqualify Buhari on the ground of non-possession of requisite qualification is pure pettiness and undue distraction from germane issues at stake. PDP should heed INEC’s advice to approach the court because by law, INEC has no power whatsoever to disqualify candidates submitted by political parties in an elections. Why is the PDP or Presidency afraid of going to court over the issue, but have continued to mount campaign of calumny against the leadership of the INEC?  The leadership of PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation has even threatened to pass a vote of no confidence on INEC for not disqualifying Buhari! What a cheap blackmail for a party that is drowning and has continued to chase rat while its house is on fire?

    Meanwhile, INEC has stated that it was yet to receive any formal request for the postponement of the elections, it insisted that it would stick to its timetable for the polls. Its quick response is a welcome development. It shows the readiness and firmness of the commission to conduct the polls as scheduled. The commission should work hard to ensure that all registered voters get their PVCs before the elections as promised.

    Apart from this, the commission should know that it is its  constitutional right to fix date for elections not PDP or anybody including the Presidency. The commission’s leadership should be aware that all eyes are on them, and should not allow themselves to be use as pawns in the political chessboard of anybody ahead of the polls. Nigerians are quite aware that the hiccups being experienced by the commission towards the preparation of the polls is as a result of the federal government’s failure to release all the commission’s 2014 budgetary allocation.

    Nigerians at this critical time in the search for true and capable leadership cannot afford to witness a compromised, rigged and crisis-ridden elections.

    • Ntama a retired civil servant wrote from Asaba, Delta State
  • Again, no to polls shift

    Again, no to polls shift

        •Postponement of elections barely two weeks to E-Day is dangerous

    It started as rumour. It was too dangerous a thought to be entertained. Why would anyone want to shift the dates of elections fixed about one year ago? But, the call has now become too loud to be ignored, even though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is yet to accede to the request. Proponents of the idea insist that the country is already in a bind and only a shift would protect the credibility of any election conducted as fixed this month.

    For this, they rely on the casual manner of production and distribution of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) by INEC. In a state like Lagos, only about 35 per cent of those registered in 2014 have been issued the card, which INEC insists is the only valid qualification to participate in the election.

    They have also pointed out that the widely touted magic wand for electoral integrity  – the card reader –  is a technology that remains untested. They argue that the general election, starting with presidential, senatorial and House of Representatives polls are too important to be used for the experiment.

    While the argument may sound somehow logical, we are constrained to reject it outright in the country’s interest. A shift of the polls could set the entire country on fire. First, while it is being argued that no date is sacrosanct since it is not enshrined in any law, it must be pointed out that all those involved – the electoral body, political parties, candidates, observers and the electorate had made all preparations towards the dates announced by INEC last year. A shift would put some strain on the stakeholders who had legitimately assumed that the only body saddled with the conduct and management of the process had done its homework before releasing the timetable.

     

    Calls for shift preposterous

     

    Besides, at the moment, INEC is yet to declare its inability to live up to its constitutional responsibility. If the commission should accede to this strange request at this point, it would be an admission of failure by a body that had more than four years to produce and distribute the PVCs. Nigerians had called for the use of the card readers and PVCs for the 2011 election, given the huge amount the country committed to the project. The public only relented on the ground that the commission that came on board in 2010 be allowed adequate time to prepare. It was believed at the time that the process would have been concluded within two years.

    We are bothered by the dire consequences of a shift. There are two major political parties in the land and it promises to be a keen contest. It is, in fact, the closest that the opposition has got to presenting an alternative to the ruling party. It has been observed in various parts of the world that the keener an election is, the more tensed the atmosphere. Nigerian elections have always been marked or marred by violence. To save the country this recurrent ugly experience, the election must not only be free and fair, it must be so adjudged by all, including the opposition, international observers, domestic observers and the electorate.

    In this instance, the shift is being championed by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but opposed by the main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). In view of this, the country sits precariously on a keg of gunpowder. Its fate is too important to be so trifled with. We are convinced that this is an example of when a matter may be permitted by law, yet inexpedient. We agree that the 2010 Electoral Act (as amended) allows an election to be conducted within the band of 150 to 30 days before the expiration of the incumbents’ tenure, but, having freely come up with the February 14 and 28 days, INEC should keep faith with them. In 2011, it had a false start and had to call off an election it had started, this should not be a repeat of sort.

    At any rate, what is the ruling party’s interest in championing the call for postponement of the polls? Some say it is to enable it put a few things in order so as to shore up its waning image because, as things stand, it is going to the polls from a position of weakness. But why should that be a burden that Nigerians must carry? How does that concern Nigerians? The ruling party has had more than five years under the Jonathan presidency to prove its mettle, if it has wasted the opportunity, whose fault is that? What is it that it wants to do even if the three months’ extension is granted that it could not have accomplished in five years?

    INEC has to understand that Nigeria is more polarised along ethnic, religious and partisan lines now than at any other point. This is the more reason why it should not toy with the idea of postponing the polls. What the situation calls for is for us all to play our parts by avoiding the ugly incidents that led to deep divisions in the past. This is a point at which all hands must be on deck to save the country. We therefore call on the federal and state governments to provide all the support needed by INEC to get all willing voters to obtain their cards within the 11 days left before the first set of elections. Nigeria invested heavily to make this INEC succeed and it would be a tragedy if it fails the test.

     

    Big tragedy

     

    It would be tragic for the commission to shift the election and set the nation on edge and ultimately prove right those who had predicted that the 2015 elections could ironically truncate democracy in the land.

    The matter, as we noted,  is worsened by the fact that it is the ruling party that is behind the calls for postponement of the polls, using all manner of subterfuge, thus preparing our minds to travel the usual roads that we travelled in the past.  INEC must be wary of falling into the temptation, lest it be accused of bias even before the contest starts.

    The commission’s chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega, must understand that all eyes are on Nigeria and the way he handles the polls, particularly the calls for postponement, would go a long way in testing the commission’s impartiality and independence. As we have always argued, rigging of election does not start on voting day; it starts with little details like the one under consideration.

  • New York Times: Don’t shift Feb. elections

    New York Times: Don’t shift Feb. elections

    NEXT months’s elections should not be shifted, The New York Times has cautioned. The elections are due on Febuary 14 and 28.

    There have been suggestions in some circles that the polls be postponed because of the Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast.

    Lagos preacher Tunde Bakare backed the idea, which was widely condemned as an assault on the constitution.

    But in yesterday’s review of its editorial of January 17 entitled: In Nigeria, the Terror Continues, the magazine said delaying the elections would be a mistake.

    It said the election would afford a new government to reassert a state control on the areas now being controlled by the out-of-control Boko Haram insurgents.

    The review also said that fighting insurgency required a government with the political will and ability to effectively tackle security challenges.

    According to the paper, such willingness and ability include policy reforms that would bolster governance in the affected states and caution abuses of security agencies.

    The editorial reads:

    “They commanded global attention for a fleeting few days last spring. Across the world, millions prayed for and tweeted about the plight of the more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls abducted in northeastern Nigeria by the vicious militant group Boko Haram. The first lady, Michelle Obama, joined the cause, posting a selfie looking downcast and demanding that the militants “#BringBackOurGirls.” The United States government hastily put together a task force of experts and dispatched drones to search for the hostages.

    “Soon, though, the world largely moved on.

    “In recent months, the horrors in remote districts of Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, have multiplied as the insurgent group has taken new hostages, carried out bombings and scorched entire villages in a quest to wrest territory from government control.

    “Newly released satellite images taken in early January corroborate chilling accounts of the recent assaults on Baga and Doro Gowon, two small towns that came under attack on Jan. 3. Researchers with Amnesty International, which released the images, said that roughly 3,720 structures, including homes, were destroyed or damaged by fire.

    “On Jan. 10, a girl witnesses described as being about 10 years old detonated explosives hidden under her veil in a market in Maiduguri, a teeming commercial district in an area controlled by Boko Haram, killing an estimated 20 people.

    “While some of the girls taken hostage in April by Boko Haram escaped, the terrorist group, whose name roughly translates to ‘Western education is forbidden,’ has taken hundreds of other female hostages, according to the Human Rights Watch Nigeria researcher Mausi Segun, who interviewed several of the students who fled.

    “The number of towns under Boko Haram control has expanded from 11 last fall to 17, according to Human Rights Watch. In recent weeks, it has become harder to get an accurate measure of the scale and death toll of attacks because the militants have dismantled telecommunications systems in the areas they have seized. Death toll estimates for the recent attacks on villages ranged from a few hundred to thousands.

    “Until relatively recently, the Nigerian government consistently downplayed the strength of the group, which seeks to establish an Islamic caliphate in Nigeria. As it ramped up attacks last year, Boko Haram laid bare the weakness of the country’s security forces, which have failed to mount an adequate response.

    “Last spring, the United States dispatched some 80 Air Force personnel to neighboring Chad to fly drones in an effort to help the missing girls. It also sent a Pentagon-led team of some 30 specialists tasked with advising the Nigerian government on intelligence and operational matters. The drone team is long gone. A Pentagon spokesman said last week that surveillance drone flights over Nigeria have become “infrequent.” Only three Pentagon officials remain on the task force.

    “Washington and others in the international community could do more to alleviate the suffering of Nigerians in areas controlled by Boko Haram by providing humanitarian aid and building up the capacity of the Nigerian security forces. But fighting this insurgency will require a Nigerian government willing and able to take on the security challenge effectively. This will require institutional reforms to bolster governance in remote parts of the country and curb heavy-handed practices by the security forces that have alienated many civilians.

    “The presidential and legislative elections are scheduled to take place next month, but some Nigerians have suggested that the balloting be put off until the violence ebbs. Delaying the elections would be a mistake, however. Newly elected Nigerian leaders might have a chance to chart out a plan to reassert government control in areas lost to the militants.”

  • APC rejects interim govt, election shift

    APC rejects interim govt, election shift

    •Party says polls must hold as scheduled

    ALL Progressives Congress (APC) has said it will neither accept an interim government nor a postponement of next month’s elections, as being advocated by certain individuals.

    The party insisted that the elections must hold as scheduled on February 14 and 28, 2015.

    Its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in a statement in Lagos yesterday, warned that any attempt to scuttle the polls in preference for any other arrangement would be resisted through available constitutional means.

    The statement said: “We are aware that those who are not comfortable with the turning of the political tide in favour of the opposition ahead of the elections are scheming to abort a possible victory for our party, through either an interim government or a postponement of the elections.

    “These enemies of Nigeria include those who are worried about the strong anti-corruption stance of our party and its avowed commitment to good governance, and those who favour the status quo of anything goes, bad governance and massive corruption that have left Nigerians deeply pauperised and traumatised.”

    APC said those who might consider the two scenarios of interim government and postponement of the elections as outlandish should consider the published, but yet unrefuted statement by Deji Adeyanju – said to be an official in the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe.

    The party quoted Adeyanju, who handles Dr. Okupe’s Twitter Account, as saying in a Blackberry Messenger (BBM) statement: “Buhari can never be President of Nigeria. Quote me any day any time. Instead of Buhari to become President of Nigeria, Nigeria would rather break up.

    “A military coup will even be allowed than for Buhari to become the President of a democratic Nigeria. Quote me any day, any time.”

    The party said since the statement had not been refuted, it could safely be concluded that the BBM represented the thinking in the Presidency circles.

    The statement added: “If a citizen is advocating a military coup against a sitting government just to prevent a supposed election victory of the opposition; it is nothing short of treason. Yet, the security agencies that have been falling over themselves, warning against incendiary and inciting statements, have not yet swung into action over this inciting statement. This is not encouraging vis-a-vis the non-partisan stance of the security agencies.

    “The truth is that what could as well be a Freudian slip by Adeyanju has exposed the depth of panic and desperation in the Presidency ahead of next month’s polls. This has also confirmed that those who have been canvassing, either openly or otherwise, the options of interim government or postponement of the elections, are working at the behest of certain forces.”

    The party, therefore, called on Nigerians to be vigilant and be ready to do everything under the law to protect the nation’s democracy; imperfect as it might be.

    It also alerted the international community to the evil machinations of some desperate politicians ahead of the general elections.

    ‘’Our stand is simple, but needs to be restated: the 2015 general elections must hold as scheduled all over Nigeria, and our party is ready for the elections. As we stated earlier, we will only accept the outcome of a free, fair, credible and transparent elections; not that of manipulated polls.

    “We will also not agree to the postponement of next month’s elections under any guise, and an interim arrangement plot is totally unacceptable to us.

    “We challenge the ruling PDP to also state its own stand on next month’s polls for the world to note.

    ‘’We also challenge the Presidency to state its own stand and to also distance itself from the anarchic and treasonable statement by one of its own over the forthcoming polls,” APC said.

  • Aregbesola: Power shift imminent

    Aregbesola: Power shift imminent

    Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has urged Nigerians to prepare for change, stressing that power shift is imminent.

    The governor, who spoke at a ceremony organised by a group, the Nasrul-Lahi-il Fatih Society of Nigeria (NASFAT), in Osogbo, the state capital, advised Nigerians to vote wisely.

    At the ceremony, an Islamic scholar, Prof Hafis Oladosu, stressed the importance of good governance, assuring that the governor’s second term will bring more prosperity.

    Aregbesola said the general election will herald a new dawn with the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, at the poll. The governor said that Buhari will turn the country around and rekindle public confidence in government.

    The governor said that poverty and misery will become thing of the past when the APC becomes the ruling party.

    Aregbesola lamented the security situation, saying that some people have been unleashing terror without provocation.

    He said: “Nigeria is today in its trying moments. Everything has stood still. But I want to assure you that this is just a passing phase.

    “By February, the general election will sure usher in  change.

    “We need to pray and work diligently for the peace and progress of the country. And this is why we must seriously condemn the activities of some individuals who hide under Islam to perpetrate evil.

    “There is no written law or directive either from Qur’an or Hadith that directs Muslim to unleash terror on fellow creatures.”

    “No one can fight God’s battle for Him. And I