Outrage has continued to trail the statement by Chairman
of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC,
Professor Attahiru Jega, that he could not guarantee that
the 2015 general elections would hold on rescheduled
dates in March and April.
Jega on Wednesday told the Senate that only the Service
Chiefs could guarantee the sanctity of the rescheduled polls
in view of the security challenges facing the country.
Jega, who was grilled for about four hours by the Senate on
INEC’s preparedness for the elections as well as the
effectiveness of the use of card reader for the accreditation
of voters, affirmed that the commission was ready to
conduct credible, free, fair and transparent elections.
He, nevertheless, confessed that the postponement of the
election had offered the commission the opportunity for
extra preparation.
Speaking on the development, Secretary of The Coalition of
Oodua Self Determination Groups (COSEG), Rasak
Olokooba, stated that Nigerians will not take the issue of
another election shift lightly.
According to him, the first shift in election was an
abberation hence there is no room for another
postponement.
Olokooba stated that the INEC boss’ statement has created
confusion in the minds of Nigerians.
“We don’t know where he belongs now, whether on the
people’s side or that of the government. Saying the security
agencies will determine whether election will take place is
like abdicating his official postition and ceding his power to
security agencies,” he said.
Human right activist and public commentator, Richard
Akinola, posted on his facebook page that as part of the
moves to scuttle next month’s election, the hawks have
resolved to use the June 12 template, by sponsoring a
plethora of cases.
“Two of such cases would be filed in the next few days. One
is for the proper interpretation of section 135(2) of the 1999
Constitution, which allows for the election to be postponed
to six months if the country is at war. The second is to stop
INEC from using the card reader for the election. These are
apart from the various cases filed against the candidature
of Buhari. Interesting times lie ahead,” Akinola stated.
The executive chairman of The Committee for the
Protection of Peoples Mandate (CPPM), Nelson Ekujumi,
also condemned the statement by Prof Jega that the
conduct of the 2015 general elections is dependent on
security in the north east.
He described it as unconstitutnal, irresponsible,
undemocratic and an abdication of the constitutional
responsibility of INEC which is empowered to conduct
elections by the Electoral Act.
“We reject this statement in its entirety and call for a
retraction as well as an apology to Nigerians for this
assault on democracy,” he averred.
Director, Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) Professor Ishaq
Akintola joins other well-meaning Nigerians, true patriots
and genuine democrats to warn against the diabolical plot
to extend the tenure of the current administration,
describing it as nothing short of a coup against the people
of Nigeria and a sabotage of what Rousseau called the
General Will.
“With the exemption of a few bootlickers and court jesters,
Nigerians are eager to vote come March 28 and April 11. It
is rather unfortunate that the Presidency seeks to uphold
Napoleon Bonaparte’s postulate that the only lesson which
men learn from history is that they learn nothing from
history. Or how else can we describe the present
maneuvers from Nigeria’s seat of power against the
backdrop of the June 12 imbroglio and the subsequent
chaos that dragged Nigeria back by several decades?
“Without the fear of contradicting the Hegelian thesis that
history always repeats itself, we hasten to remind President
Jonathan of the Marxist antithesis adjudging the first
repetition of history as a tragedy and the second, a farce.”
MURIC appeals to President Jonathan not to prove cynics
right, adding that the excuse given for postponing the
election (security) was dismissed by many as a ruse.
“It will be too bad if this plot is true. It had better not be. It
is not the winners of elections or their losers that emerge
heroes among leaders but those who are most adaptable to
change, those who play the game according to the rules,
those who respect the rule of law, those who choose honour
and integrity and those who shun the tempting songs of
power.
“We charge members of the NASS to stand on the right side
of history where their names will be written in letters of
gold. We remind the honourable members that whereas the
courage to sell one’s conscience is cheap, the will to take a
principled stand is worth a governor’s ransom.
“If it is true that President Jonathan has repeatedly told
Nigerians that March 28, April 11 and May 29 are
sacrosanct, then we must not be hearing this type of
rumour. We invite Mr. President to fear God, the source of
all power. To prove that he is a true Christian, President
Jonathan must keep faith with Numbers 30:2 where the
Bible says, ‘When a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears
an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his
word; he shall do according to all that proceeds from his
mouth’.
“To be or not to be? That is the question. Whether President
Jonathan is prepared to prove to Nigerians that he is a good
Christian and therefore worthy of the responsibility of
leadership of about 170 million Nigerians will be largely tied
to his readiness to keep a date with the March 28, April 11
elections and the May 29 inauguration,” he stated. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL AND TOUCHING NIGERIAN CELEBRITIES BIOGRAPHY AND SCANDALS
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