• Friday, March 29, 2024
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FG cautions Int’l Community on interference as INEC restates readiness for Saturday rescheduled polls

INEC

The Federal Government on Wednesday advised members of the International Community to respect the sovereignty of Nigeria by not doing anything that will suggest interference in Nigeria’s electoral process as the country goes to the rescheduled Presidential and National Assembly polls on Saturday.

Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, gave this advice during an interactive session with members of the Diplomatic Corps in Abuja on Wednesday. He said that while Nigeria welcomes partnership and support from the international community, the country will allow its sovereignty to be compromised neither would it allow any nation to dictate to it since it does not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.

“We welcome very much your engagement, we appreciate your support, we acknowledge how important your engagement for us in 2015 helped us to deliver probably one of the most free and credible elections we have had in this country for a very long time.

“But we have cause to be concerned with the way the engagement have been communicated, because at the end of the day, we are a sovereign country, the line should not be crossed from exalting us, and wanting this to succeed and really be democratic process to dictating to us and getting to the nitty-gritty of how we run the country,” he added.

Onyeama also admonished the International Community particularly election observers to carry out their function with impartiality stressing that they should not show preference for any candidate or political party in the election.

He disclosed that the briefing which was organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in conjunction with Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was aimed at engaging with friends and partners of Nigeria on the rescheduled election and together proffer solutions to some of the challenges to a hitch-free election.

He however, expressed dismay that despite government’s huge support to INEC providing all it requested for on time and never interfered in its operations, the administration was disappointment that INEC had to postpone the election by one week citing logistics challenges.

“It is absolutely important for the message to be communicated that the government is extremely disappointed and just cannot understand why after three and a half years we still are unable to deliver the process on time”, Onyeama told the foreign envoys.

He therefore, called on INEC to ensure that the rescheduled election unfailingly held, come Saturday February 23. “We will not accept any excuses or any other reason, the election must be held on Saturday. Nothing else would be acceptable to government”, he added.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Wednesday also restated its readiness to conduct the polls on Saturday stressing that “only an act of God can stop Saturday’s polls.”

INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu stated this while addressing the diplomatic community and international election monitoring groups in Nigeria, for the 2019 general election.

Yakubu, who was represented by an INEC National Commissioner, Mustapha Lecky, categorically stated that everything possible to ensure the elections hold on February 23, have been put in place, adding that the commission have no reason to feel things would go wrong.

According to him, the commission has developed a 6 point agenda of what needed to be done to ensure success, adding that it has completed the deployment of materials as at today.

“We have no reason to believe that anything except an act of God, and we believed that as a prayerful nation the act of God has been assuaged and that things will go right, we have no reason to feel that anything will go wrong. We have received all the materials, they have been checked, audited people have been informed, party agents have gone there to check”, he said.

Why he stated that INEC has already taken responsibility for the postponement, he reiterated that the body is committed to surpass achievement of previous elections in the country.

He blamed the postponement on logistics and problems associated with the primaries of some political parties, which according to him delayed the printing of ballot papers.

Reacting to a question on the alleged shoot at sight order, issued by President Muhammadu Buhari to security operatives, Acting Inspector General of Police (IG), Mohammed Adamu, said during the session that the police are working with other security agencies to ensure ballot box snatchers and other criminal elements who may attempt to scuttle the polls are arrested and prosecuted according to the law.

Adamu said, the force has taken measures to protect voters, officials as well as election observers during the polls and warned trouble makers to rethink or be made to face the consequences of their actions.

He added that all security personnel for the polls have received one training or the other to enhance their professionalism. “The police would be professional, impartial and would create a level playing ground for all parties”, he said.

The International Community has also called for calm and urged the electoral umpire to ensure adequate logistics to forestall any eventualities.

 

Innocent Odoh