News
Edo polls: Tinubu didn’t sign peace accord, yet emerged President – Kuhah
To Matthew Hassan-Kukah, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, not signing the peace accord during elections does not carry any compulsive consequences because the Nigerian Peace Committee (NPC), lacked the powers to force anyone to adopt it outside the moral obligations, which could have a telling effect on candidates.
Kukah, one of the conveners of the NPC, led by Abdulsalami Abubakar, former Nigeria’s military Head of State, while appearing in a townhall meeting organised by Channels Television, on Sunday that the only consequence of failure of political parties and their candidates to sign the documents, meant to persuade them to shun electoral violence, was only because it could send a wrong signal to Nigerians.
Citing an example with the 2023 presidential election, Kukah, who is also a prominent social critic argued that despite not signing the document as candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu still became President, though he equally blamed the opposing political parties for not making political capital out of the development.
The television network, held the meeting tagged: Edo Election Security Townhall, as a precursor to the September 21 governorship election in the state, in partnership with the Kimpact Development Initiative and the UK International Development.
Though 17 political parties are fielding candidates in the September 21, 2024, Governorship Election in Edo State like the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Labour Party (LP), among others, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) shunned the pre-election ritual last week over some allegations levelled against the police.
Advancing his argument on the raison d’etre of the initiative the cleric, who said there was no way the committee could force any candidate to sign the peace pact which has become an electoral ritual in the last decade, added: “The National Peace Committee, what we do is not in the Electoral Act, it’s not law; it’s moral.
“You can’t compel people to fall in love or love their neighbour. If you go back to the 2015 election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar the presidential candidate for the PDP, was not there to sign the Peace Accord. And of course, the opposition went to town, which is what it ought to be, and the next day, he (Atiku) turned up to sign.
“What is also very interesting is that the current president, when he was a presidential candidate, did not sign; it wasn’t our fault that the political opposition didn’t take advantage of it. It’s a pity but we are not going to take anybody to court for not signing the Peace Accord. The only thing it does to you as a candidate is that it sends a wrong signal which can be very easily exploited by the opposition.”
The cleric had spoken against the backdrop of the refusal of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), making good its threat not to sign the document after Godwin Obaseki, gave the immediate release of members of the party, allegedly arrested by the police as a condition for the party to ink the document.
Abdulsalami Abubakar, Nigeria’s former military Head of State, who brokered the transition that led to the return of civilian rule in 1999, said on Thursday at the venue of the signing ceremony in Benin that the ruling party in the state, had declined to sign the document.
He told his audience, which included representatives of the political parties contesting the election, including PDP: “As you must have seen in the media, I met the Governor (Godwin Obaseki) yesterday and he told me that the PDP is not going to sign this peace accord.
“They have made some observations and I was expecting the Chairman of the PDP to come and make that statement. Having waited for him this long, it is just to announce that the PDP said they are not going to sign. The PDP said it will only sign the peace accord if certain conditions are met.”
“It demonstrates, in the clearest possible terms, that when citizens act with unity, clarity of purpose, and resolve, they can indeed move mountains.”
These were the exact words with which the African Democratic Congress (ADC), reacted to Tuesday’s agreement of the 10th Senate to reverse the controversial provisions in the Electoral Amendment Bill, in which they earlier retained the discretionary provision of transmission of results of election electronically by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Bolaji Abdullahi, spokesman of the coalition party, attributing the U-turn to the resilience of Nigerians, described the development as a victory for democracy and people-powered civic action.
Abdullahi, a former Minister, who called on Nigerians to stay alert and continue mounting pressure on relevant authorities until the amended bill secures presidential assent, is duly gazetted, and takes full legal effect, urged Nigerians to maintain eternal vigilance.
Following a groundswell of outrage across the country, regarding its initial decision to retain the 2022 provision and subsequent protests, which saw Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party in 2023 and Rotimi Amaechi, former Governor Rivers State, teaming up with a group of Nigerians on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, the Senate eventually bowed to pressure mandating the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to transmit elections to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), real time, but with a proviso to use manual collation only as a contingency in cases of technological failure.
Hailing the development, ADC stated that the recant by the lawmakers was beyond a simple legislative reversal, but a reflection of the resilience, alertness, and growing political awareness of Nigerians from all segments of society.
The statement, added: “The decision of the 10th Senate to urgently reverse the contentious provisions of the Electoral Amendment Bill that it passed is a significant victory for the Nigerian people.
“This outcome is not merely a legislative U-turn. It is a testament to the resilience, vigilance, and rising political consciousness of Nigerians across all walks of life. From street protests to digital campaigns, the Nigerian people have once again shown that sovereignty truly belongs to them.
“In the face of the ruling APC’s habitual disregard for due process and democratic values, the Nigerian people have reaffirmed their place as the ultimate custodians of our democracy.
“In this regard, the African Democratic Congress salutes the courage and tenacity of Nigerians. We commend every citizen who raised their voice, whether online or offline, to resist legislative mischief that threatened to undermine our electoral integrity.”
Calling on Nigerians to remain steadfast, stressing that the development represents only a step in the right direction, not the final victory, the party, added: “We must now ensure that this momentum is sustained until the amended bill is not only passed but duly assented to by the President, properly gazetted, and becomes an enforceable law of the Federal Republic.
“We must remain vigilant to ensure there are no last-minute betrayals or technical ambiguities, the kind that often lead to ‘stories that touch.’ Let this be a reminder that democracy does not thrive in silence or indifference. It demands participation, persistence, and sometimes, peaceful defiance.”
Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), on Tuesday, confirmed that President Bola Tinubu has once again intervened to stem the political schism between the Rivers State House of Assembly and Siminalayi Fubara, the governor that would have led to the latter’s impeachment.
But the Minister, left a caveat – this is the last time the President would be making such an intervention – as he added that both sides would now have to work according to the terms agreed at the parley.
In the latest faceoff which started early in the year, 27 members of the assembly said to be loyal to Wike, had launched a fresh impeachment move against the governor – the third since he took office in 2023, accusing him of sundry infractions of the constitution including spending money without appropriation.
Fubara, who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), last year, was believed to have run to the President for succour, whose intervention is believed to have halted the move.
Giving details of the rapprochement, Wike told reporters in Abuja, on Tuesday that the President playing a fatherly role stepped in to resolve disputes between the two parties.
His words: “He is very kind to the people of the state. If there seems to be any problem between the legislature and the governor, as a father, he really has to intervene.
“This is the second time Mr President is intervening and I believe by the grace of God that this will be the last time Mr President will intervene.”
Wike, who has since been linked to the crises from the outset and in firm grips of the lawmakers, also pointed out his own role in the matter, saying: “I have told them to obey Mr President and I know that they would not hesitate.”
President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday finally sent the name of Usman Isa Dakingari, former Governor of Kebbi State to the Senate for confirmation as as a non-career ambassador after last month’s embarrassing mix-up in which his name suddenly appeared for posting to Turkey without legislative clearance.
Tinubu, in a correspondence conveying the appointment, which was read by Godswill Akpabio, said: “I write for confirmation by the Senate, the appointment of Usman Isa Dakingari as non-career ambassador,.
“Whilst I hope that the senate will consider and confirm the nominee expeditiously, please accept, distinguished senate president, the assurances of my highest consideration.”
After reading the letter at plenary, the Senate President, said the matter would be referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs for consideration and report back to the Committee of Whole within one week.
Electoral Act: Don’t go to sleep, maintain eternal vigilance, ADC tells Nigerians
This is the last time Tinubu will intervene in Rivers’ row – Wike
Tinubu finally sends Dakingari’s name to Senate after ambassadorial posting row
-
News3 weeks agoPresidency: Tinubu has compensated Wike *Fubara must be left alone
-
Editorial2 weeks agoClosure of Onitsha Main Market: How not to gaslight the people
-
News2 weeks agoBREAKING: Senate delivers fatal blow! *Throws out electronic vote transmission
-
News4 weeks agoBlazing guns in Abuja Secretariat, as contractors bar Minister from office
-
News2 weeks agoCoup plotters planned to kill me – ex-CDS *Says Nigerians would have fought back
-
News4 weeks agoAngry workers battle Wike! Paralyse activities at FCT
-
News4 weeks agoPrepare for US bombs if 2027 is rigged – Utomi *Nigeria may cease to exist
-
News7 days agoObi to Senate: Why bring confusion to Nigeria? Joins #Our votes must count protest!