Sign Electoral Amendment Bill, Ezekwesili tells Buhari

The Presidential Candidate of Action Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), Oby Ezekwesili, on Friday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to rescind his current stance and sign the electoral amendment act into law. Dr. Ezekwesili appealed to the president to match his words with actions by signing the electoral bill in the interest of peace, at a presidential stakeholders’ roundtable on credible and fair elections, organized by the Presidential Summit in Abuja. She warned that any attempt at a repetition of what she described as “dress rehearsals” of using military to disenfranchise citizens from voting as reportedly seen in Osun and Ekiti states would be resisted by Nigerians “It is very important that the president who portends to want peace because he has signed the peace accord, should be the one leading in an exemplary manner to ensure that his words and actions are consistent not contradictory”. “President Buhari has to be the exemplary leader that will ensure that our elections don’t end up taking our country and people down, and the way is for him to listen to the court of public opinion by signing the electoral amendment bill of 2018 into law. She disclosed that the electoral amendment bill was key to instituting electoral integrity, and the provision that enables the use the of electronic transmission of results show be backed by law not INEC regulation. Highlighting other impediments to a credible poll, she emphasized the pertinence of involving the Military and other security officials on best practices during the elections. She noted that “The President as commander in chief needs to be very careful to not abuse his public office by making the military establishment complacent in election malpractices. “None of us must accept that, so it is pertinent that all of us early enough before the elections as part of preparation ensure that there are clear rules of engagement on how these institutions will be utilized during the elections,” she further explained. In the same vein, the Presidential candidate of the Abundant Nigeria Renewal Party (ANRP) Tope Fasua said solving the high poverty rate in Nigeria was the first step towards ensuring peace post 2019 elections. “The key reason for electoral violence in elections in Nigeria is actually because there is too much poverty in the land,” he disclosed. He said once poverty was eradicated and more jobs were created, many youths who perpetrate violent activities would find better use of their time. The Convener of the Presidential Summit on violence free elections, Prince Mustapha Audu, explained the imperative for the summit, stating the Presidential Summit team was passionate about Nigeria’s ability to deliver a credible election in 2019. He called on political aspirants to shun character assassination of opponents and stick to solving developmental issues bedevilling the country, instead of instigating violence through their actions and utterances. “We need to project a better image as a country and as a people, this will help us avoid violence,” he said. All Presidential aspirants who participated in the summit unanimously committed to a credible and fair 2019 polls, but urged the Federal government to ensure the safety of lives of Nigerian citizens during and after the polls. Oyindamola Adebisi, Abuja