Abdulsalami: Parties, Candidates Must Accept Outcome of Anambra Poll Once Credible, Free

• Says INEC has guaranteed transparent election
• 18 governorship hopefuls sign peace accord
• All is set for tomorrow, declares electoral body
• IPOB suspends stay-at-home order
• PDP reiterates call for Kanu’s release
• Chidoka, Abaribe, Amadi, others call for peaceful exercise
• NBC warns against inciting broadcast

Nseobong Okon-Ekong, Nume Ekeghe in Lagos, Chuks Okocha, Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja and David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

Chairman of the National Peace Committee (NPC) and former Head of State, General Abdulsalamii Abubakar, has appealed to political parties and their candidates in Anambra State to accept the outcome of tomorrow’s governorship election once pronounced credible. Abdulsalamii made the call in Awka at a Peace Accord signing ceremony preparatory to the poll, which was attended by candidates of the 18 contesting political parties.
Abdulsalamii, who coordinated the signing of the peace understanding, assured that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had promised a credible election in the state.

Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, said the commission had, against incredible odds, done all it should to make the electoral process smooth. Yakubu called for a violence-free poll.
Remarkably, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) had a change of heart and suspended its stay-at-home order, billed to commence today.
But the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) called for the release of the detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu. PDP said releasing Kanu and engaging the group in a dialogue would help to stem the tide of insecurity in Anambra State and the entire South-east.

In a similar vein, some key voices in the South-east called for a halt to violence and hostility in Anambra State. Former Minister of Aviation, Chief Osita Chidoka; Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe; and a law lecturer and activist, Dr. Sam Amadi, pleaded for peaceful conduct of the governorship election.

But the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) warned all broadcast stations covering the Anambra State governorship election to avoid languages and scenes likely to encourage, incite or compromise the unity or corporate existence of Nigeria.

Speaking at the Peace Accord signing ceremony held at the Professor Dora Akunyili Women Development Centre, Abdulsalamii urged the governorship hopefuls to abide by the letter and spirit of the peace pact, which they had agreed to. He told the candidates that the peace accord was a clarion call to them to commit to a peaceful election, adding that the pact became necessary following the history of electoral violence in the country.

Abdulsalamii stated, “In Nigeria, almost every election was accompanied by violence, ballot box snatching, vote buying, outright disruption of the process, and in some cases, the intimidation of ordinary citizens, who simply want to select a leader, who will govern them.
“We, the members of the National Peace Committee, have come to Anambra to support a peaceful electoral process. We cherish Anambra and we cherish the peace and unity of Nigeria. Most importantly, we want to contribute our own quota to see that the governorship election in Anambra is devoid of violence.

“Therefore, the signing of the peace accord today is not a mere exercise, it is, indeed, a clarion call for all the candidates and the political parties and all people of Anambra people to commit themselves to have peaceful process.

“We call on all the candidates, political parties and their supporters to accept the outcome of the poll as long as it is adjudged to be free, fair and credible. I have been assured by the chairman of INEC that all efforts are in place to ensure a free and fair election.
“All of us have the responsibility to deepen the cause of democracy in every part of Nigeria. We want every Nigerian to begin to enjoy the fruits of democracy. This can only happen, when there is peace and stability.”

The peace deal signing ceremony saw the candidates of all the political parties participating in tomorrow’s election, the INEC chairman, and NPC chairman, putting pen to paper and signing up to an agreement to ensure peace before, during, and after the November 6 governorship election.
The event, organised by Abdulsalamii and Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah to foster peace among politicians and their supporters, was attended by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Usman Baba, represented by Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Joseph Egbunike, who hails from Anambra State.

Others at the ceremony were Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Anambra State; the leadership of all the political parties; and Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) Chairmen.
Those who signed the agreement included former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and candidate of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Professor Charles Soludo; Mr. Valentine Ozigbo of PDP; Senator Ifeanyi Ubah of Young Progressives Party (YPP); and Andy Uba of All Progressives Congress (APC).

All Set for Tomorrow, Says INEC

The INEC chairman said the commission had done all it should to make the electoral process smooth. Yakubu appealed for a violence-free poll.
He commended the National Peace Committee for always lending INEC a helping hand whenever it was faced with the challenge of insecurity.

Yakubu said, “Faced with the current situation in Anambra State, the commission once again appealed to the NPC to bring parties and candidates to commit to peace before, during and after the election. We believe that Anambra cannot be different from Edo and Ondo. For this reason, we are also confident that, just like Edo and Ondo, the election on Saturday will be peaceful and the outcome will reflect the will of the Anambra voters.

“INEC has done everything possible to ensure credible elections in Anambra State under very difficult circumstances. I would like to appeal to all parties, candidates and other actors to play their roles in support of the Peace Accord.

“Without peace, our deployment plans, innovations in voter accreditation and result management, safety of election duty personnel and accredited observers, security of election materials and, ultimately, the credibility of the polls will be undermined. That is why we must all support today’s Peace Accord and the work of the NPC, in general.
“Before I conclude, let me re-echo what the chairman of the NPC has just said. Those who signed the Peace Accord must abide by its letter and spirit in words and deeds.”

IPOB Suspends Stay-at-home Order

A statement yesterday, signed by IPOB’s Director of Publicity, Emma Powerful, said the group decided to call off its stay-at-home order following appeals by elders in the South-east, coupled with the grave economic implications of the movement restriction for the people.

The body urged the people of Anambra State to come out and vote in the governorship poll without intimidation or fear.
The statement said, “Following the genuine intervention of our elders, esteemed traditional institutions/rulers and religious leaders, and after due consideration of the positive impacts of their engagement, and sequel to the fact that our elders have spoken in our terms, the leadership of IPOB, ably led by Nnamdi Kanu, hereby and immediately calls off the one-week sit-at-home earlier declared to commence tomorrow, November 5, to November 10, 2021.

“We have equally considered several appeals by our mothers, who earn their living based on their daily economic activities, which will obviously be affected if the region is locked down for one whole week. It’s never our intention to add to the pains of our people, hence, our decision to suspend the sit-at-home.

“The people of Anambra State should go out en masse and peacefully exercise their franchise come 6th November 2021, and accordingly, choose a leader of their choice and should not be intimidated by anybody, group of persons or security agents.
“Anambrarians should vote and standby to protect their votes. No rigging of any kind will be tolerated on the Anambra State governorship election. It must be transparent, free and fair to all.

“We wish to thank IPOB members worldwide, friends of Biafra and lovers of freedom for their continued support for our dogged struggle for independence.
“May we, therefore, warn detractors, traitors and our enemies not to cause confusion by imputing motives to our decision. IPOB doesn’t expect anybody to observe, monitor or enforce the suspended order, otherwise, such action will be considered a rebellion to the highest leadership of our global movement.

“On the other hand, our oppressors should not take our decision as an act of cowardice. IPOB still believes that our elders, religious leaders, political leaders and various stakeholders will live up to their promises in their engagements and efforts towards securing the unconditional release of our leader.
“We, therefore, urge everyone to go about their lawful businesses without fear of any molestations. All agents of darkness recruited by our enemies to inflict pain on our people under the guise of enforcing the sit-at-home are hereby warned to steer clear or brace up for the consequences of their evil action.”

State PDP Chapter Reiterates Call for Kanu’s Release

PDP, in a statement by the publicity secretary of the party’s Publicity Committee for the Anambra election, Ken Okologbo, said, “President Yar’Adua used the stick and carrot approach to stem the issue of militancy in the South-south. This brought the present peace experienced in that region and greatly increased our revenue as a country.
“The APC government will rather continue to leave us in this terrible state of insecurity all over the country. We are fast turning into Afghanistan, as rightly described by Governors Okowa and Ortom.”

The statement said PDP ended its campaign at Uga, in Auguata Local Government Area of Anambra State. It alleged that the party was “mindful of the propaganda going on that money was used in mobilising the huge crowd that thronged Alex Ekwueme Square on Tuesday 2nd November 2021, where we had our official flag-off.
“Our opponents are intimidated by the overwhelming welcome Ndi Anambra have shown for our candidate Valentine Ozigbo and our party.”

The party called on INEC to go beyond the peace accord and ensure that incident forms were not used during the election.
PDP stated, “We have all been assured that the Bimodal system of accreditation will be applied. If the card reader fails to recognise your thumbprint then the facial features will also come into play. This was used in Isoko South by-election to the Delta State House of Assembly and we saw how successful it turned out to be.

“We are set to win this election and we urge Ndi Anambra to come out to vote for PDP. A vote for our party is a signal to what will be happening in Ekiti, Osun and eventually in 2023 to free us of the rudderless government of APC that has left us in this complete state of insecurity presently threatening the elections in the South-east.”

Chidoka, Abaribe, Amadi, Others Call for Peaceful Exercise

The plea for peace was the central point of a conversation initiated and anchored by Chidoka on practical ways to push through the agitation of the South-east people, particularly, within the context of the Anambra election.

The discussants, including Abaribe and Amadi, said call became imperative to prevent external forces, criminal elements and desperate politicians from hijacking the genuine agitation of the people and cashing in on the situation in the state to unleash violence and frame up innocent persons to justify state-backed brutality.

The trio urged the various groups agitating in the region to shame and disarm their traducers by asking Anambra people to come out and choose the leader that approximates the type of personality they would represent Ndi Igbo in their yearnings as a people.

The discussants believed, “The act of Ndi Anambra voting on Saturday is a major part of the affirmation of our self-determination as a people. If the people cannot decide who will govern them through an election, they are not close to determining their future through a democratic process. Denying the people the right to vote is a major denial of their rights to self-determination.

“When the people elect a leadership that represents their hopes and aspirations, they are in a position to pursue the people’s agenda more effectively. Whatever is the plan, it has to go through a political process. If you have governors and legislators, who share in the vision, it would be easier to realise such vision.”

Abaribe pointed out he would have languished in prison if he was not a senator and ready to meet the bail condition that required a senator to stand surety.
“You have to be in the game to score a goal,” Abaribe explained.

Amadi called for a more pragmatic strategy in the South-east, like the Catalonia approach of self-development and using the movement as a platform to achieve political control.
In his summary of the discussion, Chidoka restated the call for a peaceful election on Saturday and noted that the election was a significant part of the self-determination process of the people. He said the poll was an opportunity for the people to elect the leader that would best advance their agitation instead of allowing situations that give their traducers an upper hand to perpetrate violence and foist undesirable leadership on them.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment in Anambra State, Don Adinuba, raised the alarm over an alleged plot by some members of an unnamed political party to use the federal might to arrest key officials of Governor Willie Obiano’s administration.

In a statement, Adinuba said the desperate politicians wanted to use certain compromised security operatives to orchestrate the sinister plan. He added that the statement was designed to bring the evil plan of the people to the knowledge of Anambra people and also for the attention of all relevant authorities for prompt action.

IGP Restricts Movement

Meanwhile, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) announced a 24-hour restriction of movement in Anambra, beginning from today, Friday, at 11:59pm. Deputy Inspector General in charge of operations, Mr Zaki Ahmed, who is the leader of the operations, announced this to journalists while unveiling the activities of police operatives posted for the Anambra governorship election.
Ahmed said, “I assure you that the police will be professional in carrying out its duty throughout the election, and will maintain neutrality and a level playing ground for all the political parties.

“Adequate security is provided and you have seen the level of manpower in the state, and we are working in collaboration with other security agencies to ensure peace in the state. We are protecting everyone and ensuring that all parties will be protected equally.
“We have created intervention spots and they will respond to any distress call. This is a national assignment and we should work hand-in-hand to ensure peaceful election.

“The restriction of movement is for 24 hours and begins on Friday 11:59. All the hotels in Awka are very well covered and fully armed men are there. We have men on all the streets of Awka and we are well protected. We have cautioned our men over human rights abuses, and they are sure to behave themselves.”

South-east Marginalisation Responsible for Agitation
In a related development, the governorship candidates of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Mr Obinna Uzor, and Africa Democratic Congress (ADC), Mr Akachukwu Nwankwo, insisted that the marginalisation of the South-east in the distribution of national resources was the trigger for the agitation championed by IPOB.
Speaking on Arise News Channel, Nwankwo said the federal government should engage IPOB in order to resolve the insecurity in the region.

He said, “There should be a tactical, rational approach that enables us to have this conversation going. What IPOB is saying is that they want good governance. IPOB wants a relationship between the Igbo people and the federal government that makes every Igbo child feel that he is part of Nigeria. In the absence of that, they want to leave Nigeria. Theoretically, that’s what they are doing.”

Similarly, Uzor said the situation required a political solution. He said, “What they are saying is, recognise us, let us be part of Nigeria. The Igbo are the most patriotic tribe in Nigeria. What we are saying is, let us have a dialogue, let’s have a political solution.”

AA Candidate Optimistic of Free, Fair Poll Dutch

The governorship candidate of Action Alliance (AA), Mr. Ben Etiaba, said yesterday that he was confident that INEC would conduct a free and fair election tomorrow. Etiaba said he expected that the turnout might be low but expressed the readiness of his party’s followers to turn out en masse to cast their ballot.

He spoke on Arise News Channel, saying, “I have more faith in this election than I have ever had. INEC went out of their way as a body to educate the political parties, the masses, and the candidates on what to expect.

“They have come up with a system that if adopted and if implemented properly would give us a credible result. I have no reason to believe that the election wouldn’t be credible. I am not one of those, who believe the results have been written. I don’t believe that. I believe this election would be credible.”
On voter turnout and the fear of voter suppression, Etiaba noted that there was a valid concern of voters about their safety. But he remained optimistic of an average turnout.

He said, “In every election, voter turnout has been suppressed, but I would be lying if I didn’t acknowledge the fact that there would be more voter apathy this time than we have always had. The number of people voting would be suppressed than before, because people are scared.
“But it is my belief that enough people would turn out to make the exercise very credible and whatever happens, there would be a result and I am looking forward to mobilising people to make sure people come out to vote for us and create an upset if we win.”

NBC Warns against Inciting Broadcast

The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) urged all broadcast stations covering tomorrow’s election in Anambra State to eschew broadcast language and scenes capable of stoking emotions and violence.

Director General of NBC, Balarabe Shehu Ilelah, issued the warning yesterday in a press statement.
Ilelah implored all broadcasters to desist from using or allowing their platforms and facilities to be used for the broadcast of contents that might lead to the breakdown of law and order. He asked all broadcasting stations to take note of the provisions of the Nigeria Broadcast Code and other relevant regulations guiding the broadcast of elections in the country.

Ilelah cited some of the provisions, including sections 3.11.1 (a), 3.11.1 (b), 5.41 (f), 5.3.3(j), 5.3.3 (i), 5.3.3 (k) and 5.3.4 that required broadcast stations to ensure that no programme contained anything tantamount to subversion of constituted authority.
Specifically, section 5.41 (f) provides, “Broadcast shall not transmit divisive materials that may threaten or compromise the indivisibility and indissolubility of Nigeria as a sovereign state,” he said.

NBC also warned broadcasters to end the broadcast of partisan political campaign, jingle and any form of partisan political party identification 24 hours before the election. It said broadcast stations should use any vote obtained at the polling station or from an exit poll to project or speculate on the chances of a candidate.

Ilelah said the relay of election results or declaration of a winner could only be done by the authorised electoral officer for the election. He warned that any broadcaster that breached any of the listed provisions of the code shall be severely sanctioned.