Abdulsalami backs Obasanjo on Feb. 25 poll results, as Afenifere differs

Chairperson of the National Peace Committee (NPC) and ex-Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd), has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to address the questions raised by former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, over the conduct of the elections and result collation by the commission.

Chief Obasanjo, had in n open letter, Monday, asked INEC to invalidate election results from voters without the commission’s Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) in order to avoid citizens’ pent-up anger and frustration, which he warned could ‘burst forth in negative reactions.’

Backing Obasanjo on the proper conduct of the post-election processes, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd), in a personally signed statement, Tuesday, advised INEC to ‘take all the time it required to ensure that it delivered results that would inspire the confidence of the people and meet time tested international standards.’

The National Peace Committee (NPC) organises the traditional pre-election signing of a peace accord against violence and electoral malpractices in the country.

The NPC which who equally faulted the manual transmission of election results by INEC as against the electronic transmission which is enshrined in the Electoral Act amendment, asked INEC to take note of the allegations of misconduct trailing the presidential election.

In a statement, Tuesday, the committee headed by General Abubakar urged Nigerians to remain calm while the issues were being sorted out.

The statement, titled, “A Call for Calm: Please Give Peace and the Process a Chance,” the National Peace Committee also urged the security agencies to cooperate with INEC in their investigations of these weighty allegations.

“We appeal to INEC to heed the grievances being expressed, to take the necessary steps to escalate investigations of all allegations of infractions and to ensure that justice is clearly done to all citizens who went out to vote.

“We have received reports of the culture of voter suppression manifested across the country through the application of targeted violence, disruption of processes, inducement of voters, intimidation, deliberate frustrations of voters and the challenges of the election equipment.

“We are pleased that INEC has accepted these lapses and promised to rectify these lapses. We appeal to the security agencies to collaborate with INEC in their investigations of these weighty allegations. Concerns about the failures of the INEC Result Viewing Portals (IReV) across the country must be thoroughly investigated to ensure transparency.

“We commend Nigerians for turning out en masse to exercise their civic duty by voting in the February 25 elections. We took note of their patience, dignity and enthusiasm, which Nigerians lined up to vote despite observable challenges in the polling units.

“Along with millions of other Nigerians and the international community, we have followed developments since the commencement and end of the presidential and the National Assembly elections last Saturday.

“Not unexpectedly, the elections got on to a rather rocky start with the problems around logistics and accreditation processes across the country.

“On balance, despite these glitches, the elections were peaceful across most part of the country. However, now that the process of casting our votes has been largely concluded, the challenge now lies with the collation of the results. We perfectly understand that Nigerians are quite disturbed by these developments. Against this backdrop, we make the following appeals.

“Nigerians must be reminded that the world has invested a lot of goodwill towards us in these elections. We have taken note of the dissatisfaction among voters who braved all harsh weather elements to perform their civic duties. All citizens deserve to be rewarded by a process that ensures that their votes truly count.”

The NPC stated that in the spirit of the peace accord, which all candidates and their chairmen signed on February 23, 2023, it was appealing to all the presidential candidates and chairmen of parties to take full responsibility for statements made by their spokespersons and agents.

“We appeal to all our citizens to remain calm while INEC continues with its process to its conclusion.

“Finally, let us all stand together trusting in the will of God, Allahu Subhanahu Wata’ala for our country.

“We appeal to INEC to take all the time it requires to ensure that it delivers results that inspire the confidence of our people and meet time tested international standards.”

Meanwhile, the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, the Afenifere has pleaded that INEC be given a free-hand to see out the 2023 elections, as against demands from some quarters that the exercise be cancelled.

A release signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, Tuesday, said the call was necessitated by an earlier statement credited to former President Obasanjo in which he demanded the stoppage of the Presidential Election Results being made by INEC.

While acknowledging that the 2023 Presidential and National Assembly Elections ‘might have some shortcomings, Afenifere insists that the perceived shortcomings do not constitute enough grounds to truncate the entire process. The ongoing announcement of election results should be concluded. Those who are not satisfied either with the process or the outcome can seek redress through the paths outlined by the law – Elections Tribunal and the Court.’

Ajayi added that “anything short of that may lead to the truncation of the democracy we are practising now.”

“Afenifere, from its formation over 70 years ago, has always stood for democracy and good governance. Along with others, it fought for independence for the country just as it fought valiantly with others for the ouster of the military. It did this through the formation of the National Democratic Coalition, along with other patriotic Nigerians. Many of our leaders and young elements paid a lot of prices for a civil rule to return to the country in 1999. This is why we can not fold our arms and watch as anti-democratic elements who appear to be hell-bent on truncating the present democratic experiment to have their way.

“When and where you win, be magnanimous. In the same vein, where and when you lose, be calm and accept it as your fate. ‘You lose some and gain some’ to quote a common cliche.

“Let this electoral process be successfully concluded so that we can have a smooth transfer of power on May 29 this year.”