Posted by By FEMI BABAFEMI on
Vice President Atiku Abubakar yesterday insisted that neither President Olusegun Obasanjo nor his agents at the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) and EFCC can stop him from contesting this year's polls.
Vice President Atiku Abubakar yesterday insisted that neither President Olusegun Obasanjo nor his agents at the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) and EFCC can stop him from contesting this year's polls.
This is even as his party, Action Congress (AC) described the purported disqualification of candidates by INEC on the basis of alleged indictment by a panel as illegal, null and void.
Speaking in Ado Ekiti township stadium during his campaign, Atiku said he could not be banned by any force as long as the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is still in operation.
There were reports on Thursday that the Vice President alongside some other contestants have been disqualified by INEC from contesting the April polls.
His words:"The law of the land does not allow the disqualification of any candidate by either the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), the police, or the State Security Services (SSS).
"There is this misinformation, propaganda and lies going all over the country that Atiku Abuakar has been disqualified. I want to tell you that I Atiku Abubakar is not disqualified by anybody".
Atiku noted that security reports also cannot be used to disqualify anybody from contesting once his party has presented such person, adding that only the court of law has the power to ban any candidate.
At the rally which was well attended by party faithful, Atiku said PDP has failed in all the promises made to Nigerians when it came to power in 1999.
According to him, the people of South West were decieved in 2003 into voting PDP with the intention that their lots would be better if they belonged to the mainstream of Nigerian politics, adding that their mainstream is the mainstream to poverty.
The Vice President, however, on behalf of the federal government apologised to the people for not providing all the necessary infrastructure.
He therefore, urged the South West people not to make the same mistake they made in 2003. "Don't vote PDP. If you vote for them you vote for garrison commander. And who is the garrison commander? Obasanjo. We will not vote for PDP again it is a Poverty Development Party. It must go away, "Atiku told the crowd.
Also addressing the crowd, Chief Audu Ogbeh pointed out that Nigerians would blame themselves if they failed to vote out PDP by April, adding that the party has foisted the worst poverty on the country.
In a statement issued in Abuja by AC's National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said any disqualification that did not follow due process was a big joke, which definitely would not stand.
The party also accused INEC of acting in contempt of court by its purported disqualification, especially since Justice Kewunmi of the Federal High Court in Abuja had already issued an injunction restraining INEC from disqualifying any candidate of the AC under whatever guise.
It said that the injunction was still subsisting, and that INEC actually filed a motion to vacate that injunction, which the court threw out
"It is clear that INEC cannot disqualify any candidate, and certainly not any candidate of the AC." This so-called disqualification is a big joke as far as we are concerned, because we know it will definitely be upturned," AC said.
According to the party, his purported disqualification by a puppet INEC, acting on the orders of a puppeteer administration, is one last act of desperation by a government that has now established a reputation for crass lawlessness.
"With a string of losses in court, at least seven at the last count - these dead-enders have now resorted to administrative terrorism just to achieve their objective of shutting the political space and preparing the grounds for their cronies to coast to victory in a one-sided election."
It however warned that the AC, acting in concert with other progressive political parties and with the backing of all Nigerians, will not sit by and allow one man to bring down a house that has been built with the blood and sweat of all patriots.
"This administration should stop toying with the fate of Nigeria by taking measures that can set the country on fire.
"Nigerians have shown that they will not allow one man's blind ambition to push our country into the abyss of anarchy. These anarchists must not be allowed to get through the back door what they could not achieve constitutionally and legally," it added.