The Vice Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 23 election, Mr. Peter Obi, has expressed concern over the fallout from some states in last Saturday’s gubernatorial and state assembly elections, particularly in Rivers State – to which he drew the attention of the international community.
Obi, a former Governor of Anambra State, said Tuesday in a statement from his media office that the militarisation of elections to the extent of taking a collation centre to a military location and denying international observers access “is clearly unacceptable and a grave breach of democratic norms”.
The Vice Presidential Candidate said that “the needless involvement of the military has aggravated the situation in Rivers State”. He wondered why the undue interest in Rivers, “a very well-known strong PDP state”.
Obi said that Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike “should be the last to face this type of harassment given his popularity with his people, which is as a result of his outstanding performance which earned him the title of Mr. Projects even from the opposition”.
He stated that all reasonable persons within and outside the country who desire the growth and sustenance of democracy in this part of the world should rise up and condemn what is going on in Rivers State.
“Any reasonable person should know that Governor Wike is the last person to be harassed knowing what he has put in just in four years in the delivery of democracy dividends to the people of Rivers State.”
The Vice Presidential Candidate also described as curious the fact that all the six states where the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the governorship election inconclusive are where PDP was cruising to victory before the process was halted.
He lamented that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) “has become so shameless in its desperation as it has become brazen in perpetuating its rigging agenda.”
Obi appealed to the global democracies “to show more than passing interests in what is going on in Nigeria, particularly Rivers State, as such untoward behaviour has far reaching consequences in the entire democratic process in the African continent and the world.”