20th January, 2015
PRESS RELEASE:
WHO
IS AFRAID OF 2015 POLL?
As Nigeria approaches the
2015 general elections which will kickstart on 14th February, the
horizon remains cloudy as booby traps and mines are being laid on a daily basis
in the path of the exercise.
For instance, the idea of
exempting North Eastern Nigeria from the exercise is being muted in certain
quarters. Also being contemplated is the possible postponement of the whole
general election and setting up an interim government.
Some have allegedly
considered a phantom coup to be staged by military elements loyal to the
establishment. The academic certificates of General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) have
also become an issue as the ruling party insists that he must be disqualified.
There are also one or two cases challenging the eligibility of the incumbent,
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.
The Muslim Rights Concern
(MURIC) warns overzealous politicians and all those behind these conspiracies to
come back to their senses.
We assert that none of the above configurations favours a progressive Nigeria.
Exempting the North East from
elections because of the Boko Haram saga will send the wrong signals to the
outside world. It will also be interpreted as victory for
the insurgents.
Nigeria must not surrender
so easily. What we need is the political will to hold elections in the troubled
zone and to call the bluff of the trouble makers. Other crisis-ridden areas of
the world have done it. Elections have been successfully held in Iraq several
times in spite of the prolonged war. Afghanistan and Pakistan have also dared
the Taliban and held elections.
People in the North East should
not be so callously disenfranchised. Whoever has been basing his chances
of victory at the 2015 polls on prolonging crisis in the region must be taught
a lesson. The surviving population must be allowed to cast its protest vote.
Postponing this coming
election is out of the question. Such postponement will be an unprecedented act
of cowardice. Who is afraid of the 2015 polls? The Federal Government must not renege on its
pledge to the Nigerian people. The law of the land must be obeyed. Election is
the only universally recognized tool for peaceful change in a democracy.
Those who contemplate or
plot a temporary return of the military are building castles in the air. Military rule or intervention is no longer fashionable anywhere in the
world. It is even an anachronism in the Nigerian context. Nigerians want change,
smooth change via free and fair election.
They are thirsty for the
juice of liberty after six years of stagnation, institutionalized corruption,
inept leadership and undisguised hatred for certain sections of the population.
MURIC finds the attempt to
disqualify General Buhari (rtd) as mean, ludicrous, infantile and wholesomely
malicious.
This is the general’s fourth coming. Was there any time
he contested past elections without being cleared by the electoral body? What
is this noise about Buhari’s certificate? Is an army general not on a very high
academic pedestal?
Why is the Nigerian Army
not clearing the air on this issue? Is the army aware that this can ricochet?
Are we ready to impugn the integrity of our army generals after fighting for
the country and after serving us in different capacities? This will go beyond
Buhari if the Nigerian Army is not forthcoming. What goes round
comes around. It will expose to ridicule any general who wants to contest an
election in future. Or is this how we should treat our war heroes?
By the way, how can the
spokesperson of a political party call an army general an illiterate and the
army remain silent? This is a pertinent question. Do we have illiterates among
our army generals? The Nigerian Army has a duty to answer this question.
Nigerians are waiting.
We put it to the ruling
party that it is too desperate. After sixteen years in power, the
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) propaganda machinery has gone senile.
The ruling party is nervous and we will like to recommend an hourly checkup of
its blood pressure until the elections are over.
Nigerians deserve a ruling
party that has level-headed, principled, tested and trusted men and women on
the driving seat. Neither will the attention of the Nigerian electorate be
distracted by this pettiness. Nigerians are rooting for integrity and
credibility, not for empty certificates.
MURIC is not surprised by
the poverty of principle in the ruling party’s campaign camp since the party
chose somebody who is still facing corruption charges as its director of media and
publicity. A serious political party deserves better.
By the same token, those who are still pursuing court cases seeking to stop President
Jonathan from contesting the 2015 presidential election are creating clogs in
the wheel of progress. Nigerians must be pragmatic. This is not the
time to stop any of the candidates, particularly if we want peace to reign. We
should allow sleeping dogs to lie.
In conclusion, MURIC
appeals to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remain focused.
INEC is doing a good job and the electoral body should be wary of
disqualifying any candidate at this stage in order to avoid plunging the nation
into crisis.
We call on all
stakeholders to stop creating unnecessary impediments in the path of this
coming election. We advise the military to remain professional and to resist
the temptation to intervene in the political process. The Nigerian Army is also
advised to be more vocal on the issue of Buhari’s certificate in order to save
other generals (serving or retired) from ridicule.
Professor Ishaq Akintola,
Director,
Muslim Rights Concern
(MURIC)
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