The Presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP in the just concluded Presidential and National Assembly elections held on Saturday, February 25th, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has said that President Muhammadu Buhari, did not do enough to provide for free, fair and credible polls.
Kwakwanso said that in civilised countries of the world, with the level of alleged vote buying, use of guns to intimidate the people and with the level of irregularities recorded, the elections would have been cancelled, just as he said that the outcome of the Presidential election never reflected the wishes of Nigerians.
Kwankwaso said, "I believe that democracy cannot go too far under our present circumstances. So, we are concerned in the NNPP by the way and manner elections have taken place in the last general election and the potential of all these things is dangerous, in fact even in these off-season elections, no body is saying anything. Anything goes.
"After they rig the election, they will say announce me, let him go to court. Because the court is their own, they know what to do with the court. They don't care. I believe it does not help anybody. It's fair to keep it just. I believe it is what has created so many part of the crisis in this country, banditry, kidnapping, Boko Haram. People are agitating here and there because of injustice.
"This injustice is what we have been seeing in many places. So we urge the government, especially the federal government, which I believe everything stops on the table of the President. If he wants free and fair elections, if the leader looks away, these criminals will continue to do what they know how to do best. Because they are not loved by their people at their States, all what they know how to do is to give out money and thugs and terrorize everybody and take over and go to government house. This is a very sad moment in this country, I can tell you that you cannot build something on nothing, and that is what is happening now.
"That is what we announce results from State assembles up to the National Assembly and nobody is celebrating, because what is coming out is not the wishes of the people. If you want to see celebration go to Kano and see people dancing, because they are sick and tired of the government and not only Kano. Peoples were expecting changes in many states, if not all States , but now Nigeria has gone back to square one.
"Every body was looking for a real change, positive change, not what we have today. Not the way and manner things are happening. Our children cannot go to school, our children are taking drugs, our graduates have no jobs, and nobody cares. All what they need is swear me in and take over and worsen the situation."
He has however pleaded with the Judiciary to always remain as the last hope of the common man and not a repeat of number four person becoming number one courtesy of the Supreme, expressing fears that now it may be another ball game
Speaking in Abuja at the first post 2023 election meeting of the party's National Executive Council (NEC), the former Governor of Kano State and a Senator however accused the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) of manipulating the outcome of the general elections in some states, especially the presidential election, simply said that the election "is not a reflection of the minds of Nigerians".
According to him, with the performance of the NNPP inspite of the late entrance into the political scene, almost a year old, it is a party for the future against the backdrop that many Nigerians are ready to join the NNPP ahead of 2027, even as he lamented that Nigerians were not allowed to enjoy the "positive change" they were looking for.
Consequently, Kwankwaso who doubles as the National Leader of the party, urged the leadership of the NNPP to use the opportunity provided before the next round of election in 2027 in "to tighten their belts, go back to constituency and work more better. We have four years to reposition the party to deliver positive change to Nigerians".
He said, "We joined this party barely one year old, the performance we have seen, I believe we should all congratulate ourselves. We have down well and what is even more important is that almost everybody now believes that NNPP is party for the future. Immediately after this election, some people visited me to say that now we have seen the light and before 2027, they are going to join our party.
"The challenge of the time is very critical, because this is the first time in the history of this country where we have a party, especially after the establishment of the two parties across the country, that within the shortest possible time, had this kind of popularity based on the integrity and hard work and commitment to this country. I believe it is time we congratulate ourselves and also tighten out seatbelt to go back to our constituencies and work much harder.
"I also believe that now that we have more years to strategize and push forward the party so that more people are accommodated as members and leadership at various levels of the party at the States, and even in terms of number and quality so that Nigerians can have an opportunity to have a positive change that our party, the NNPP stands for in this country.
"We are happy with the security agents going by what we have seen in Kano and other parts of the country. Generally they have done well, even though Kano had their peculiar situation where we believe some security agents were against our party.
"On behalf of our party and the entire leadership and all of you here, to all our supporters, who are standing side by side with us to defy all the challenges, challenge of time, even challenge of resources. We have seen in most States, how people were openly displaying money, both local and foreign currencies, purchasing voters and so on and so forth."
He called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to improve its processes in the conduct of future elections, even as expressed concerns with the way the electoral umpire placed its party's logo as it was poorly printed on the ballot papers as this led to massive disenfranchisment of ts supporters in some areas.
According to the former Minister of Defence, some international observers like former President of South Africa, Thambo Mbeki and others who were in the country to monitor the exercise could not decipher the party's logo on the papers, adding that Nigerians "don't like the ruling party," as he maintained that the APC resorted to "vote buying with local and foreign currency, and use of thugs to violently" clinch electoral mandates.
Senator Kwankwaso accused the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, who he accused of importing thugs from neighbouring states and countries, even as as he acused some security agents for complicity in election related violence.
The NNPP Presidential candidate who lampooned politicians of deliberately impoverishing Nigerians to buy them over during elections, howevervwarned against the win at all cost syndrome, as he bemoaned that unfair treatment and injustice created banditry, Boko Haram, and other crises bedeviling the country.
Kwankwaso said, "We have seen how in many states, especially in my state Kano, how government brought out money and the State government in Kano, imported thugs, people from neighbouring States and neighbouring countries and also being supported by some of the security agents that we have here in this country.
" I pray to Almighty God to show us in this country when elections will be the way it use to be. Peaceful without arms, without other dangerous weapons, without open purchase of votes and so on.
" I pray to Almighty God that, in fact we are already there at the point of prayer, because some of these things are being supported by Government at all levels. The way it is going now, only God knows how to solve some of these things.
" We have seen what happened in Kano in 2019 and also in the last election. We saw what happened in some States, especially Kogi State, where security agents were seen running around, picking ballot boxes, shooting in the air. All sorts of things and many other States, even in Imo.
"We pray that they judiciary should be a better place for us, because now, we have number four being the governor of the State, maybe he will be number five or six and still go back to his seat, being supported by INEC, supported by judiciary. People have seen what happened in our case in 2019, so actually for me, I believe that so many things are wrong with our democracy. And those are hitting so hard at our democracy are the very people who are the beneficiaries of this democracy.
Senator Kwankwaso who noted that "Nigeria belongs to all of us, warned that nobody should think they have more sticks to fight as he commended the party for their achievements, revealing that more people are pushing to join it before the 2027 poll.
Earlier in.his remarks, NNPP's National Chairman, Professor Rufai Ahmed Alkali who revealed that besides producing a governor-elect, the party won two Senatorial seats and other positions at the House of Representatives, said that while "the 2023 presidential election has come and gone, it has left behind a trail of anger, bitterness and uncertainty with many unanswered questions agitating for answers.
Alkali said, "In my view, for anybody to have legitimate authority in this country, he must have political victory, legal victory, and moral victory".
The NNPP National Chairman called on INEC to change gear and redouble its efforts to reestablish confidence in the electoral process during the upcoming governorship elections in Kogi, Bayelsa and Imo States respectively.
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