Obi laments Kano re-run poll, says thuggery, rigging may consume Nigeria

Vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi, has expressed worries over the incidences thuggery, rigging and other electoral irregularities that took place during last Saturday’s governorship re-run election in Kano State.

Obi, who is also a former Anambra State governor, decried that Nigeria is “now institutionalizing thuggery and rigging as the process of coming into power”

Describing the situation as a very dangerous precedent for the country, he said “we are dangerously bequeathing to this society a trend that is bound to consume not only our youths but the entire country.”

Kano State Governor Abdullahi Ganduje, who going into the supplementary election was trailing the PDP governorship candidate in the state, however had the table turned, and was declared winner of the poll after he garnered more votes than his opponent during the re-run election.

But in a statement on Monday from his media office, Obi said the Nigeria Police that mobilised top officers to Kano to secure the state during the election should explain to Nigerians and election observers how political thugs took control of the supplementary election in the state.

He also wondered how the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), could have without second thought speedily recognized and acknowledged election results from a process where machetes carrying miscreants took charge of the process.

He said, “Nigeria further ridiculed herself and made the country a laughing stock for thinking that the kind of process witnessed in Kano at the weekend will produce leadership that can grow the state.”

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Noting the unnecessary loss of quality heads, in particular the supposed killing of a Professor in Benue which he said was most painful, Obi said, “If India with over 800 million voters can conduct election without losing such caliber of people, if President Buhari and APC could come into power in 2015 without such senseless loss of lives, why should this be the case now?”

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