Politics
ATIKU TO BUHARI: Be ready to emulate Jonathan who conceded when he lost in 2015
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, says has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to adopt the peaceful approach of former president Goodluck Jonathan who conceded when he lost the 2015 presidential election.
Atiku was reacting to Buhari’s New Year message in which the president said the 2019 election should not be a do-or-die affair.
Reacting to the president’s message in Abuja, the former vice president said leaders should lead by example by preaching peace at all times.
Atiku said he welcomed Buhari’s message about peaceful elections.
He, however, noted in a statement that it was not enough for the president to condemn do-or-die politics if he cannot control the activities of overzealous aides, including the country’s security chiefs, especially the Inspector General of Police whose activities he said lately gives him away as a partisan player in negation of his constitutional role.
Read also: ‘PDP will never come back to this country’– Tinubu
The PDP presidential candidate advised Buhari to go beyond lip service and urge security chiefs to be politically neutral during the election, adding that their loyalty to the constitution doesn’t include putting themselves at the service of the ruling party at the expense of free and fair elections.
Atiku also called on President Buhari to follow the example of former President Goodluck Jonathan, who, in 2015, who he said walked the talk of the 2015 elections not being worth the blood of any Nigerian.
According to Atiku, Jonathan lived by his noble words and statesmanship when he conceded defeat without hesitation, thereby contributing to peaceful conduct of the election.
The PDP presidential candidate also reminded Buhari that it was not enough to “preach peace when he cannot publicly condemn the violent behaviour of his supporters who harass, molest and publicly humiliate his opponents and their supporters.”
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...