Abdulsalami Abubakar, former military head of state has advised politicians to avoid vote buying and violence in the Ondo governorship election scheduled to hold November 16.
Gatekeepers News reports that the chairman of National Peace Committee (NPC) gave the advice on Friday in Akure, Ondo state capital, during signing of peace accord by seventeen political parties and their governorship candidates.
Abdulsalami advised all candidates to accept the outcome of the election once it is adjudged free, fair, and credible, adding that any candidate who may be dissatisfied with the election outcome should seek legitimate and peaceful means of addressing his concerns rather than resorting to violence.
He said, “I urge all politicians who will sign the accord to fully commit themselves and their parties to the letter and spirit of the accord to shun violence and intimidation and remember that as politicians, you must demonstrate the spirit of sportsmanship, as that is a key trait of good leadership.”
“It remains the duty of Nigerian citizens to elect their leaders free from any inducements or prejudice. Political actors must also discontinue this menace of vote trading.”
The politician said Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should live up to its responsibilities in ensuring that eligible voters exercise their franchise peacefully during the poll.
He said, “I therefore urge them to remain resilient in averting any threats of violence and maintaining the peace in the state as we are only a few days away from the elections.”
Speaking on behalf of all candidates, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, incumbent Governor of Ondo and flagbearer of All Progressives Congress (APC) noted that the state has been peaceful before this time.
The Governor promised that he would abide by the terms of the peace accord and urged other candidates to ensure they play the game according to the rules.
He said, “All stakeholders have been abiding by the rules of the game. I plead that they stay with the tenant of democracy. We will all abide by the tenet of the peaceful accord.”
“Elections will come and go, but the state will remain. During the election, we should remain peaceful and also after the election.”
