Raji Ahmed and Kingsley Olawale, two members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), have blasted some Nigerians for criticising the voting procedure that helped Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the APC candidate to win the 2023 presidential election.
The pair, who are associates of the former Lagos Governor and President-elect, Tinubu and made this known in a statement made available to journalists on Saturday.
Their reaction is coming following the pro-Tinubu group/APC supporters solidarity March which held in Abuja on Tuesday, March 28.
Tinubu, who is a former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the APC, won the 2023 presidential election over 17 other contenders polling 8,794,726 votes in total, the most of any candidate.
This online medium recals that a number of well-known Nigerians, including former president Olusegun Obasanjo, civil society organisations, and indigenous groups had referred to the election as the worst in the nation’s history.
They had cited among other things, voter incentivisation, fraud, ballot snatching, fatalities, and failure to transmit electoral results.
Nonetheless, the pair in the press release stated that political thuggery, the taking of lives, and violence were part of the country’s electoral traditions and asked people who were offended by it to either leave the country or accept the results of the election.
“When civil rule returned, there were acts of violence and fatalities. It is important to treat those who lost their lives as casualties. The President-elect needs to concentrate on moving forward, therefore we must move on rebuilding Nigeria.
‘”A tribunal was established to consider complaints as well. You should accept the decision and remain at home if you are unable to confront the court. We won’t stand for pointless demonstrations.
“We also wish to state clearly that it’s not by force to stay in the country if you can not assist the President-elect and our leader, Bola Tinubu. It would be better to leave the country than expressing your grievances by shaming the process and maligning the character of our candidate. We will not tolerate that.”
Recall that Bayo Onanuga, a spokesperson for the president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu issued a warning to Igbos in Lagos State, saying 2023 should be the last time they interfere in Lagos politics as the state belonged to Yorubas.
Tweeting on Saturday, March 18, 2023 following the conclusion of the gubernatorial election, Onanuga stated that, “Let 2023 be the last time of Igbo interference in Lagos politics. Let there be no repeat in 2027. Lagos is like Anambra, Imo, any Nigerian state. It is not No Man’s Land, not Federal Capital Territory. It is Yoruba land. Mind your business.”
Also, a former Aviation Minister and member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) Femi Fani-Kayode reportedly joined the call to stop the Igbos which later manifested in violence and ethnic slur against the Igbo in Lagos.
