Peace Accord with Jonathan enabled peaceful conduct of 2015 elections – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari said on Thursday the Peace Accord he signed with former President Goodluck Jonathan and other presidential candidates in the build-up to the 2015 elections contributed largely to the peaceful conduct of the polls.

The president stated this when the National Peace Committee (NPC) led by former Head of State, Gen.Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd), visited him at the State House, Abuja.

He, therefore, urged politicians who signed the Peace Accord and their supporters to abide by its content and spirit in the 2023 general elections.

The process, according to Buhari, was aimed at committing political parties, aspirants and their supporters to conduct their campaigns in a peaceful manner.

He said: “The timing of the First National Peace Accord is significant considering political party campaigns have already commenced in the country.

“The initiatives undertaken by the NPC are commendable as these efforts would ensure issue-based campaigns.

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“I look forward to the second phase of the signing of the National Peace Accord coming up in January 2023.

“You may recall that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and I signed the first National Peace Accord before the 2015 elections.

“It is my conviction that it contributed significantly to the peaceful outcome of the 2015 election.

“It is my hope that the National Peace Committee continues this important work post-2023.”

Buhari insisted that credible elections could only be achieved in a peaceful environment.

He added that the signing of the Electoral Act underlined his commitment to a transparent and all-inclusive electoral process in the country.

Abubakar, who briefed the president on the activities of the committee in the build-up to the 2023 elections, said they met with various stakeholders, including the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the heads of security agencies.

He said the meetings confirmed the readiness of the stakeholders to the peaceful conduct of the elections.

The former Head of State told the president that the membership of the Committee had been expanded to bring in some ‘‘young minds.”

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