Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja by Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja
January 15, 2019
2019
A month to the presidential election, Forum of Presidential Candidates, on Tuesday threw its weight behind the guidelines released last Monday by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The candidates who said the released guidelines was a reflection of series of meetings between the political parties and INEC, cautioned stakeholders against causing any tension that may lead to violence before, during and after the elections.
Part of the issued guidelines are barring collation officers from making or receiving telephone calls during ballot collation and also simultaneous accreditation and voting and mandatory use of Smart Card Readers (SRC).
The presidential candidates, who noted the use of card reader has come to stay, blamed the National Assembly over its non- inclusion in the constitution as a legally recognised electoral instrument.
While noting they filed a lawsuit to stop President Muhammadu Buhari from signing the recent amendment to the electoral law, the candidates lambasted the lawmakers for crowding the Amendement Bill with selfish provisions along with the recommendation for recognition of the card reader.
Briefing reporters in Abuja on behalf of the candidates, the Presidential flagbearer of Advanced Peoples Democratic Alliance (APDA) Mohammed Shittu, who is also the Chairman of Forum of Presidential Candidates, faulted the objection to simultaneous accreditation and voting by some political parties.
Shittu noted that simultaneous accreditation and voting will help to address vote buying and ballot box snatching.
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He was flanked by the presidential candidate and national chairman of Movement for Restoration and Defence of Democracy (MRDD), Danjuma Muhammad and national chairman of Allied Peoples’s Movement, Yusuf Dantalle
Shittu said: “We have been able to study the electoral guidelines recently released by INEC and it is what we agreed with them on 7th of January.
“As presidential candidates, we have gone through the document and it is in order
“We looked at the grey areas and from what was released we think the stage has been set for the electoral process.
“As we go into the elections we urge Nigerians to conduct themselves well.
They should think of nation first and not heat up the polity. Hate speed should be avoided.”
While they noted that the use of card readers have come to stay, he said, “the immediate accreditation and voting system will help us to save time, vote buying and ballot box snatching.
“When INEC was issuing this guideline what they told Nigerians is that this is the final guideline and I believe, we have one month to the election, I am sure that they will not issue another one.”
Speaking on the card reader, Danjuma Mohammed, who accused lawmakers of having sinister motives, said they served a good dish by way of a card reader and spiced it with poisons “that was why we went to court.”
Mohammed noted the lawmakers ought to have taken the issue of card reader as a separate as isolated amendment, “but they decided to bring in amendments that are not necessary.”
According to him: “What they did was to expunge the issue of counting and called for announcement of votes. So within themselves if they get electoral officers who choose to compromise they will just announce results.
“They didn’t mean well for the country their aim was to truncate Nigerian democracy. They should take responsibility for the failure of the card reader not being in the Electoral Act.”
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