March 11 Elections: Nigerians, Be Careful Over INEC Sudden Romans With APC, Says Group
…Asks Nigerians to vote out APC in the forthcoming guber, house of assembly elections
…Calls for immediate resignation of INEC Chairman
By Simeon OSAJIE
A group known as ‘The National Coalition of Edo Voters’ have continue to press home its demand for the cancellation of the February 25, 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections and cautioned Nigerians to be vigilant with INEC and APC in the forthcoming governorship and house of assembly elections, that Nigeria is at crossroad as the duo have suddenly become unaccepted twin.
Recall the group at a press conference in Benin City are demanding for immediate resignation of Mahmoud Yakubu, Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and also demanding that a neutral body of forensic experts should be invited to audit the entire Presidential and National Assembly elections results, with a view to discovering the demons that have been be devilling free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria.
In a peaceful protest at the Museum Ground, Kings Square, Ring Road, Benin City, Edo State capital, the group with different inscriptions, like; “Rigging Is Not Part Our Mandate”, “We Want A Collation Not An Allocation”, “INEC Belongs To Nigerians Not Politicians”, “No BVAS? No Election”, etc. said they would continue the agitation until their demands are meant by the federal government.
Addressing the crowd, one of the conveners, Comrade Christ Ojeikere said, “What are we struggling for? We are struggle for a better Nigeria; a future for our children, a place where the old can retired in peace, where the workers is guaranteed of his or her pension and gratuity after he or she retires; we are struggling for a Nigeria that will be free from blood in our streets, we are struggling for a Nigeria that will be free from armed robbers, kidnappers when you travel, we are struggling for a Nigeria where you need not to pay for ransom for kidnappers. All this varies the APC government introduced since 2015.
“It is on record both local and international that Nigeria has never had this as bad as we are presently experiencing now under the APC government. We have never see blood share as we see today – in the North-East, South-East and in the South-South of Nigeria, blood is flowing brought about by APC government.
Hon. Shadrach Udugbai is also one of the conveners. According to him, “The challenges are enormous, double inflation, massive unemployment. We shall continue to agitate until the voices are head.
“Just at the neck of time, we were hoping that Nigeria will have a fresh breath of air, but some persons who believe in darkness within the Nigeria political sphere came up and connived with Chairman of INEC robbed Nigerians.
“Nigeria in the last eight years has gone through a lot, we are suffering untold hardship, we have endure hardship painfully, and just as we have prepared ourselves, we have mobilized enmasse, we have engaged productively and meaningfully, and we were hoping that sooner than later Nigeria will transcend into the realm of Eldorado; that we are going to look back and say the ugly days are behind us, we would stand and say sooner than later our children will be born in a country that they will be proud to call their own, that sooner than later the opportunity in this country will not be circumcised to travel abroad, and all of a sudden we engaged meaningfully and fought hard to have electoral law that will put in place a government that we can call out own, we have the faith that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that can never be independent, they came on board and sold our collective votes to the backward politicians who do not mean well for Nigerians.
“This is just the beginning to press home our demand. We will mobilize and reclaim our victory. The struggle continues.”
“We have never see election rigging of this magnitude in the history of any political election in the whole world. This is the worst election we have ever had in this country. We say no to continuation of APC government.
“Even the man they put the mantle in his head pretended that he won the election has confessed to us that he know that many Nigerians did not vote for him.
“We have stood to get our freedom and our freedom is going to come back by struggle. We must reclaim our stolen mandate by APC. We say No to election rigging in Nigeria. Nigeria must move forward.”
Contributing, Comrade Olu Martins called on Nigerians to vote out APC governorship and house of assembly candidates in the 11th March, elections and also asked that the name ‘Independent’ should be removed from INEC, according to him, “they are no longer independent”.
“The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are now once upon because they are no longer independent. I hereby call for the removal of the name ‘Independent’ from INEC because they are no longer independent.
“Nigeria trusted Chairman of INEC Mahmoud Yakubu, that is why we didn’t come to the polling units with weapons. I wish we knew it was going to be struggle, Nigerians would have get prepare and come with weapon to their units to defend their votes.
“INEC Chairman promised us that there is no need to come with weapon to the polling units based on his promised that the commission is fully reading to conduct the best ever free, fair and credible election in the history of Nigeria, but reverse is the case.”
Going further, Comrade Martins added, “The two major problems Nigeria has at present are brother and sister, (the APC and the INEC) who are now known as ‘twin’. We have not experience such hardship in Nigeria under the present ruling APC government, and APC went further to add INEC into the hardship we are presently suffering.
“Not that Nigerians and any other party is afraid of election, but let known that you emerged victorious in a free, fair and credible election. Afterall during the government of former President Goodluck Jonathan when he lost to President Buhari in the 2015 presidential election, he called and congratulated Buhari because Jonathan knew that the election was free, fair and credible. That is sportsmanship, which is what we were expecting from February, 25 general elections.
“For this present presidential election, Nigerians have nothing to write home about. It is a total shame that INEC Chairman who travelled round five states to text run the effectiveness of the BVAS machines and told Nigerians that the Commission is ready to go on with the election, went ahead to take us back to manual collation of results. Where is the huge sum of money that was released by the federal government to enable INEC conduct credible election? INEC chairman must immediately resign and send to jail for taking Nigerians for granted.
“In the forthcoming governorship and house of assembly election, we must vote APC out of government. We are tired of APC government; we want to go to bed with our eyes closed.
“I want to call on Nigerians to vote for any party of their choice outside All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming gubernatorial and house of assembly elections across the country.”
