By Michael Egbejule, Benin City
Group, under the aegis of the National Coalition of Edo Voters (NCEV), yesterday, called on admirers of Labour Party to occupy the National Museums ground in Benin City today in a peaceful protest against the declaration of All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as winner.
The group made the call at a press conference in Benin City, titled, “A total, unequivocal rejection of the 2023 Presidential election results, announced by the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.”
Spokesperson for the group, Olu Martins, said the occupation of the museum is intended to express their dissatisfaction with alleged fraud and irregularities that characterised the conduct and announcement of the presidential election results.
Martins, who said the occupation of the city would be devoid of the normal protest, noted that it would be a replication of the 2012 fuel subsidy protest, when some Lagosians occupied the Freedom Park.
“We have decided that by tomorrow (Friday) morning, we will be converging at the National Museum ground in Benin City in protest against INEC and the declaration of APC presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as the winner of the election.
“We will be there from Friday to Saturday, Monday and till the March 11 state House of Assembly election. We will be occupying the area for two hours every day.
“We are inviting all Obidients and non-Obidients to the protest. We need to take action to express displeasure on the conduct of the last Saturday presidential and national assembly elections,” he said.
He stated that electoral corruption is the highest corruption in the world, which is worse than financial corruption, saying other corrupt acts are built on electoral corruption.
He called on forensic experts to audit the presidential election results to unravel factors preventing free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria.
MEANWHILE, Special Adviser to Edo State Governor on Media Projects, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, yesterday, urged Edo people to disregard recent allegation by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, which alleged that Godwin Obaseki is sponsoring a protest.
In a statement, Osagie said Obaseki, as chief security officer of the state, is committed to the security and safety of his people and would not engage in actions that are self-destructive.
The statement reads: “The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State have again returned to their usual trade of deliberately concocting lies.
“We urge the good people of Edo State to disregard their recent statement, which raised a false alarm that Obaseki is sponsoring a protest.
“We are sure Edo APC members are capable of such irrational behaviour, but Obaseki as chief security officer of Edo State is committed to the security and safety of his people and does not engage in actions that are self-destructive.”
It queried: “How can Obaseki, who will suffer the greatest liability of a protest in his state, sponsor same?”
The statement came in reaction to the alarm raised by the Edo State chapter of the APC condemning alleged plan by some persons disguised as civil society activists to hold a mass protest and paralyse Benin City, the state capital.
The state Chairman of the APC, Col. David Imuse (rtd), in a statement signed by Victor Ofure Osehobo, the party’s Assistant State Publicity Secretary, had said the party wass aware that some notorious arrow heads of the planned protests have been contacted by Edo State Government.
Source: The Guardian
