Former Vice President and PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has accused the ruling APC of using subterfuge to undermine Nigeria’s democracy and the opposition parties. He said the APC’s “snatch, grab and run” agenda of reversing PDP’s electoral victories through the courts was inimical to the democratic process. Atiku, who spoke through his media adviser, Paul Ibe, said the APC had narrowed the range of opposition engagement by rigging the elections with impunity and compromising the judiciary to do its bidding. He cited the cases of Nassarawa, Kano, Zamfara and Plateau states, where the courts declared APC candidates as winners or ordered reruns after the PDP had initially won.
He also alleged that the APC had appointed its loyalists as Resident Electoral Commissioners and manipulated the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System, BVAS, machines used for the conduct of the polls. He said the APC had confirmed the threat of compromising the judicial process in a viral video by one of its lawmakers. Atiku said the APC’s actions had put Nigeria’s democracy in a state of ill-health and made it difficult for the country to be taken seriously by the international community. He said the APC had lost its purpose and essence and had become a liability to partisan democracy.
He urged the judiciary to look at both the spirit and letter of the constitution and the marginalized feelings of Nigerians and do what is right and correct in the public domain. He said the PDP had gone through the most dastardly skewed election in the history of the country and would not give up on its quest for justice.
He called on all men and women of good conscience to come together for the common patriotic purpose of saving Nigeria’s democracy from the APC’s onslaught. He said the PDP would continue to offer constructive criticism and alternative solutions to the nation’s challenges. He expressed optimism that Nigeria would overcome its current difficulties and emerge stronger and more united as a democratic nation.
Source: [Vanguard]
