Press
Statement
We applaud the
signing of an accord by leading candidates in the elections to keep to the code
of conduct already signed by all registered political parties in the country
and be civil and courteous during the campaign.
The value of such an accord is
however not in the signing but in keeping to the letters and words. In this
regard, we are concerned about the series of reckless and inflammatory
statements as well as hate speech coming from some members of the political
class.
For example, on the 19th of January, Governor Ayodele Fayose
of Ekiti State sponsored an advert in three national dailies suggesting that if
elected into office, Muhammadu Buhari of the APC might die in office.
He had
photographs of three previous heads of state from the North West who died in
office and a question mark on the photo of Buhari. Publishing a “death wish”
for your political opponent is completely unacceptable and we condemn it.
For the second time,
a high-ranking official of the All Progressive Congress (APC), this time, its
National Chairman, has repeated the statement that the party will form a
parallel government if the 2015 elections are rigged. It was the Rivers State
Governor, Rotimi Ameachi, who first made this statement.
Also in his recent
statement, Asari Dokubo, stated that “election results are known and there will
be war if not accepted”. It not only impugned the credibility of INEC but also
gives credence to the equally reckless statement by the APC that elections are
already rigged.
Such statements coming from highly placed politicians are
dangerous as they are capable of mobilizing citizens and catalyzing them to
taking unconstitutional actions of ‘serve yourself’ type even before the
elections are conducted.
We condemn the
statements as reckless and unwelcome in the context of our commitment to
furthering and deepening of the rule of law.
We call on all
politicians and indeed all citizens to remain law-abiding and have faith in
the rule of law and due process. All politicians should address their grievances
and misgivings through legally established channels.
In the same vein, we
call on all government institutions and agencies to discharge their
responsibilities in strict conformity with the law establishing them and to
refrain from acts, either of omission or commission, which cast them as
partisan. It is in this light that we condemn the persistent efforts of the DSS
to disrupt the functioning of the secretariat of the APC in Lagos State.
The
DSS should be mindful of its role of preventing the breakdown of law and order,
which its current posturing undermines by casting it in the grab of a partisan
institution. While it has responsibility to investigate and prosecute any
allegations, it should not appear to be the prosecutor and the judge in the
case that it is investigating. Such acts tend to enthrone impunity, which in the
end breeds the sort of statements that the APC are making.
It is indeed
incomprehensible that while law enforcement agency will spend hours looking
through envelopes in the secretariat of the APC to fish out alleged foreigners,
it has done nothing to curb the persistent inflammatory statements.
These
statements are not only hateful but are made with the intent to create a
climate conducive for catalyzing people to violence. We condemn the
statements, and urge them to stop from further poisoning the minds of
Nigerians.
Signed:
- Y. Z. Ya’u, Centre for Information Technology And Development(CITAD)
- Uche Wilson Dureke, Centre for Peace across Boarders
- Dr. Hussiani Abdu, Action Aid Nigeria
- Dr. Abiola Akinyode-Afolabi, Women Advocates' Research and Documentation Center (WARDC)
- Saudatu Mahdi, Women’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternative, (WRAPA)
- Isah Garba, BACIPEM, Bauchi
- Saludeen Hashim, West Africa Civil Society Forum (WACSOF-Nigeria)
- Anya Okeke, State of African Union (SOTU)
- Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)
- Ezenwa Nwagwu, Partners on Electoral Reform
- Jaye Gaskiya, Protest to power movement
- Idayat Hassan, Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD)
- Lukman Adekunle, Zero Corruption Coalition (ZCC)
- Dr.Godwin Ojo , Environmental Rights Action (ERA)
- Gen. Ishola Williams, Pan-African Strategic and Policy Research Centre (PANAFSTRAC)
- ZIK Ibrahim, Resource Centre For Human Rights& Civil Education (CHRICED)
- Bilkisu Yusuf, Advocacy Nigeria
- ZIK Ibrahim, Transition Monitoring Group (TMG)
- John Odah, Abuja Collectives, Abuja
- Ezenwa Nwagwu, Say No Campaign
- Emma Ezeazu, Alliance for Credible Elections (ACE)
- Chido Onumah, African Centre for Media & Information Literacy (AFRICMIL)
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