… Says the election was the worst, compromised, vows to sue process
By Palma Ileye
Social Democratic Party, SDP, has challenged the results of the just concluded Ekiti governorship election saying that it was the worst elections ever held in Nigeria.
The party also vowed to sue the process adding that the system was compromised and full of fraud.
Speaking to journalist during a world press conference held at the party’s secretariat yesterday in Abuja, National Chairman, of the Party, Shehu Musa Gabam said that it was sad to see the President of the country within a short period of time celebrating his Party’s victory without investigating the process which was quite embarrassing to the country.
Gabam lamented that Nigeria’s democracy was under threat as politicians have reduced citizens into commodities that could be bought.
“Those who have access to government funds have weaponised poverty, the government has allowed poverty to be weaponised so anyone who has access to money will just buy the conscience of the people who are looking for survival. This is very dangerous for the country, it is not acceptable, it cannot be accepted and the President should take responsibility because he is in charge of the country,” the Party Chairman said.
He said that the elections was compromised by the President Buhari led administration saying that, ” before the Ekiti Guber election, we wrote a letter to the President Buhari appealing to him to deploy security personnel. Before the commencment of the election we thought he would address the nation, strategic stakeholders including the security agencies and give them strict orders to comply with the rules of the election but there was nothing like that but we saw a President who said one of his legacy was to win Ekiti State which means the President has compromised the process already.
“What we saw from the videos and pictures that were available to virtually everybody including the media, NGOs and international communities was an election that was raided with by vote buying.
“The danger is that in the next election that is coming, the people will not bother to campaign or do anything, they will concentrate on looting public treasury that is for public officials while those who have other criminal ways of getting money will stock their money and just wait for election day, they will not bother about the process, they will just buy voters and there is no great danger to our democracy than what we saw in Ekiti. We thought this kind of unpatriotism would have come down but it is going higher and higher because there is no deterrance for those that are buying votes and the President should know that it is on record that through out his tenure, he has conducted the worst elections ever in the history of Nigeria and this record will certainly go down with him.
“We reject the result of the Ekiti governorship election based on facts available. This is part of what took People’s Democratic Party, PDP, out of power today, reducing citizens into commodities that could be bought.
“Nigeria democracy is under threat and I don’t know who will salvage it . It is only God that can save this country. If this is the type of leaders that would continue,then the future is in trouble. We are demanding the system which would have created jobs.
“The president have compromised Ekiti governorship election. Nobody owns this country. We all own it. You are just privileged to be elected. If they believe they can look the resources of the country,they can’t carry it away,” he lamented.
The Governorship Candidate in the just concluded Ekiti election, Engr Segun Oni
agreed with the chairman that the conscience of electorates have been bought over by desperate politicians.
“I want to emphasize that this country belongs to all of us and we should and will do everything to rescue the nation from desperate people who will do anything to rip it off for personal gain,” he added.
He promised that the party would challenge the results of the Ekiti Guber elections.
