APC Presidential Campaign Council Alleges Plot To Stop Presidential Poll With Court Order
The APC presidential campaign council also raised the alarm alleged stealthy attempt by the PDP and Labour Party to shop for a court order to prevent the INEC from announcing the result of last Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly polls.
According to the APC campaign team, the PDP and LP are hell-bent on scuttling the country’s democratic process.
It warned the judiciary to guide and guard against being used by the politicians to scuttle democracy and throw the country into turmoil, even as it asked those hatching the plot to remember the June 12 debacle.
Director of Public Affairs and chief spokesman of the campaign team, Festus Keyamo (SAN), stated this in Abuja yesterday while briefing journalists at the press conference.
Keyamo who is also minister of State, Labour and Employment said the APC campaign council has credible information that PDP and LP have asked some lawyers to go to court and stop the 2023 presidential poll just like June 12, 1993 presidential poll was scuttled. – Festus Keyamo.
He said, “We have it on good authority that the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party have perfected plans to finally scuttle our democracy and throw the country into constitutional crises by surreptitiously obtaining exparte court orders stopping the announcement of the Presidential Election results which they fear have gone against them.
“The walk-out they staged today at the National Collation Center is just a precursor to executing the plan
“Nigerians would recall that the June 12, 1993 debacle that brought Nigeria to its knees and caused our country international isolation was precipitated by a court injunction stopping the announcement of Presidential Election results. The court order was obtained by a certain Association for Better Nigeria headed then by one Chief Authur Nzeribe.
“This is exactly what Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Mr. Peter Obi want to foist on this nation again because of their inordinate ambitions. This is not surprising because both candidates were nowhere to be seen when ASIWAJU was fighting for the democracy we all enjoy today.
“However, we wish to draw the attention of Nigerians, the Judiciary and the world to the provisions of section 84 (15) of the Electoral Act which prohibits the grant of injunctions to stop the holding of elections (which includes the declaration of results).
“The section states: ‘Nothing in this section shall empower the courts to stop the holding of primaries or general elections under this Act pending the determination of a suit.”
Warning against a repeat of the June 12 debacle, Keyamo said, “We therefore wish to advise anyone who wishes to aid and encourage these candidates along this infamous part to remember the June 12 debacle.
“They may also wish to learn a lesson or two from President Muhammadu Buhari who resorted to the court of law in 2003, 2007 and 2011 when the same PDP ‘defeated’ him in those presidential elections in controversial circumstances. President Buhari, as a true statesman and democrat, never resorted to underhand tactics to declare himself President.”
