Tinubu’s victory: Spend your time wisely, gather evidence for the court battle ahead, APC-PCC tells PDP

Obiora Ifoh, Abuja

 

The All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council, APC-PCC, has urged Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and the party to spend their time wisely by gathering evidence they hope to use in court against Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, winner of the February 25, 2023 presidential election.

The APC-PCC made the call on Monday in reaction to the PDP black uniform protest to the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, which declared Tinubu winner.

“Instead of Atiku and his party to wisely spend their time to gather the so-called evidence they hope to present before the courts, they are busy dancing ‘skelewu’ on the streets and causing traffic nuisance to residents of the Federal Capital Territory who were going to work on a Monday morning,” the APC-PCC said.

The statement signed by the campaign council’s Director, Media and Publicity, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, reads in full:

Atiku Abubakar and his band of jesters at INEC headquarters

When the defeated Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar told the whole world last week that he would seek redress in court over the outcome of the 25 February Presidential election, little did we know that he did not plan to be guided by his own promise.

 

Going by his political antecedents, it was rather not surprising that Atiku, days later, led a band of protesters, nay jesters in Abuja, to the Headquarters of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

 

What was on display today by Alhaji Atiku and his motley crowd was a new low from the perennial election loser.

 

With Atiku staging a theatre of the absurd, we fail to see how a march to INEC by a scanty crowd will provide any victory window for him and his fragmented PDP. The only recourse open to Atiku after the electoral umpire declared Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the President-elect, is the Election Petition Tribunal.

 

Instead of Atiku and his party to wisely spend their time to gather the so-called evidence they hope to present before the courts, they are busy dancing ‘skelewu’ on the streets and causing traffic nuisance to residents of the Federal Capital Territory who were going to work on a Monday morning.

 

We don’t expect a former Vice President of Nigeria, a statesman and a Presidential candidate to be so jobless as to have time to disturb public peace over an electoral outcome he had already said he would challenge in court.

 

We want to admonish Alhaji Atiku to respect his age and the high office of the Vice Presidency of Nigeria he once occupied. He should stop being teleguided by Dino Melaye, who disclosed scandalously that N400 billion was wasted on the election, which was clear at the outset that Atiku was bound to lose.

 

Atiku should avoid being misdirected by other court jesters in his party, who continued to campaign after the election, still spewing their inanities against the President-elect. They are mere comic characters in a travelling theatre group.

 

INEC Headquarters is not a court where the prayers of Alhaji Atiku can be answered. No amount of theatrical display will give him succour. The honourable and lawful path to take is for Atiku to get his lawyers to plead his case in court. He should stop throwing tantrums like a baby whose candy was taken away over an election he clearly lost due to his own poor judgment; mismanagement of his own party and violation of power rotational arrangement between the North and the South. The PDP presidential candidate dug his own grave, in his last election and, absurdly, he is trying to rewrite the script of his own utter failure.

 

We wonder how Atiku and his party hoped to win, when he himself admitted that Peter Obi, his running mate in 2019, ran away  with traditional PDP votes from the South-East and South-South.

 

It is preposterous that while Atiku is disturbing public peace, chanting phantom electoral victory, Peter Obi is making same claim. We think both men have embarrassed themselves enough and it is time they both resolved who between them is the supposed winner that will challenge our party’s victory in court.

 

Finally, we advise Atiku to retire honourably from politics and move to his abode in Dubai. At 77 in November, Atiku does not have age on his side again. He has participated in his last election and hopefully, he has learnt worthy lessons, never to place his selfish interest above party and established principles in his party and the polity.

Earlier ,The Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, the Executive Council and the National Working Committee including the State governors elected on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party,  PDP,  on Monday  stage a protest march at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja.

The leaders of the frontline opposition party are being led by the National Chairman of PDP, Dr. Iyrochia Ayu and the party’s candidate, Atiku.

The conveyor of the protest, Tambuwal, who is the Director-General of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council had earlier told journalists that the dress code for the protest is black.

The protesters took off from the Legacy House Headquarters of the PDP with the protesters wearing black at 11a.m.

 

Expected at the ongoing protest are the Vice Presidential Candidate and Governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa; Governors Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom) and Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto). Governors of Bayelsa, Edo, Adamawa, Bauchi, Taraba and Osun States.

 

Former Senate Presidents David Mark and Bukola Saraki, BOT members, NEC members, PDP Senators and House of Representatives Members, NWC members of the party, DDGs, Directors, Deputies and Assistant Directors of NCMC; Members of the PCC; Leadership of People Living With Disabilities and all other stakeholders would take part in the protest match to INEC Office.

 

It would be remembered that PDP protested at the INEC headquarters in 2019 against the re-election of President Muhammau Buhari.

 

The protest according to the party leadership is against the outcome of the just concluded presidential and National Assembly elections on February 25.

 

Recall that INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, declared the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of troubled and controversial elections it conducted on Saturday February 25.

However, Rivers State governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike says the inability of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to win the presidential election was a direct consequence of ignoring the warnings of the G-5 governors of the PDP.

 

Wike stated that it is too early in the day for people to begin to  forget that the eventual fate that befell PDP was avoidable if the national leadership of the party had heeded the several appeals and demands on them to adopt the principal of equity, fairness and justice as they approached the presidential election.

 

Speaking on Monday at Okomoko Community Field while inaugurating the Chokocho-Igbodo Road in Etche Local Government Area, governor Wike said it is now settled that the presidency has returned to the south because the north is completing its 8 years at the presidency.

 

“Our constitution says in section 7: 3c that there shall be rotation of public offices; of appointive and elective. You took the chairmanship of the party. You took the presidential candidate slot of the party and we came to you, saying this is against the spirit of our constitution.

 

“Give us back the chairmanship, you said no, that you must have it all because you have won. I said be careful then, and nobody wants to remember all those things when we were shouting.”

 

Governor Wike stated that while others are demonstrating against the outcome of the presidential elections, he is in Rivers inaugurating projects and satisfying the development needs of the people.

 

The governor explained that there was no time he ever criticised either the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi or the All Progressives Congress (APC) Asiwaju Bola Tinubu during the campaigns.

Wike said he rather campaigned, unapologetically, to true lovers of Nigeria to vote for a southern presidential candidate in the spirit of equity, fairness and justice.

 

“That is what we have argued for, that the north has had it for 8years, therefore the south should have it for 8 years. So, I am not here to persecute anybody.

 

“As far as I am concerned, anybody from the south is where I stand. That is what we agreed as integrity group that we must make sure that the south emerges as the next president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Speaking further, the governor insisted that he is one of the apostles who stood firm that power must rotate and it was based on the conviction of equity, fairness and justice.

 

He told Etche people that he has no problem with anybody who had either voted for the Labour Party or the APC because the outcome of the presidential election is that Nigeria has a southerner elected as the next president.

 

Taking a swipe at the governorship candidate of APC in Rivers State, governor Wike said Tonye Cole lacks the character to steer the affairs of the State.

“People are terrible in politics, those who cannot stand for what they say. When I say something, you can go home and sleep, knowing that I said something.

 

“Look at the APC candidate (Tonye Cole), he posted on social media, congratulating Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, but within one hour, he pulled it out. Is that a man? Is that character?  I don’t understand. This is a man who all of them, both their leader, even some of them who claimed they’re in PDP, all of them in this State voted against a southern presidency.”

 

Wike went on to say: “They voted Atiku Abubakar. The same people now turned around to say, support me (Tonye Cole), it’s only Wike that did not support Obi.

“Look at people who don’t have character, are they the ones you want as governor of Rivers State? I have character, go to anywhere, I have character. There are characters whom you cannot trust.”

Commenting on the Chokocho-Igbodo road, governor Wike said it is one of the several promises that he made to Etche people that has been fulfilled.

While awarding the contract for the construction of the 3KM long section of the road to connect Etche to Imo State, governor Wike urged the people to reciprocate the development they have benefitted by voting for Sir Siminialayi Fubara, PDP gubernatorial candidate of the State for continuity.

Wike urged the people of the State to ignore manipulated audio and video being circulated on social media by some depraved minds to mislead unsuspecting general public.

Providing the description of the project, Rivers State Commissioner for Works, Dr. George-Kelly Dakorinima Alabo said the 27.12 KM long road, awarded in December 2021 was completed within the agreed 12 months.

He explained that the road is 11.3 meters wide, has binders across with 1.5meters of shoulders, 8.3meters of carriageway, 22.01 KM long drains, has 16 culverts and 6 discharge points that takes runoff water to designated places.