Politics
US President, Biden, other world leaders yet to congratulate Tinubu two weeks after ‘winning’ Presidential Election
This is coming as the election was widely allegedly acclaimed to be poorly conducted and rigged in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress.
In contrast to Buhari’s election victory in April 2015, Tinubu is yet to receive an official congratulation from world leaders including the US President weeks after being declared winner.
On April 1, 2015, the then French President, François Hollande, the then United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and the then US President, Barack Obama were among the dignitaries who extended their congrats to Buhari.
Hollande had also showed appreciation for the commitment of the Nigerian people and the professionalism exhibited by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the conduct of the polls.
In his statement issued on Tuesday, March 31, 2015, Ban Ki-Moon congratulated Buhari on his hard won victory and praised INEC for organising the elections in a professional and credible “manner under challenging circumstances.”
“The INEC, the domestic and foreign observers, civil society, the political parties and above all the Nigerian people themselves. They have shown how a democracy can work; I warmly congratulate Gen. Buhari as the successful Presidential candidate for the All Progressives Congress (APC),”then European Union (EU) High Representative/Vice-President, Federica Mogherini had also said.
But for Tinubu, notable world leaders have kept quiet for days running into weeks amid several domestic calls to re-examine the process and court cases.
SaharaReporters reports that although the US government sent a congratulations message to Tinubu days after the INEC announcement, some civic groups had berated the US government, saying it “hurriedly congratulated Tinubu despite his fraudulent victory because the US plans to use him as a stooge for the next four years.”
On March 8 Chatham House, an independent policy institute based in London, in an analysis by one of its fellows said the February 25 presidential election showed that the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC failed to learn new lessons.
The London-based institute had stressed that the electoral umpire failed to adhere to its own guidelines, which it enunciated before the poll, especially the one bordering on the uploading of results in real-time.
“The INEC’s performance and controversies over these results mean that the electoral reforms and lessons declared to have been learned were not fully applied and, as an electoral body, it was significantly less prepared than it claimed.
“The logistical failures of INEC and widespread delayed opening of polling units meant that voters who showed up at the polls early were frustrated and many voters and INEC staff were not able to locate their polling units for several hours,” Chatham House had stated.
The commission’s patchy deployment of technology in the use of a Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), Chatham House added, still being intensely scrutinised and criticised.
The Peter Obi Media Reach (POMR) has rejected the suggestion that former Anambra State Governor and 2027 presidential hopeful, Peter Obi, cannot rescue Nigeria, arguing that his record in public office provides evidence of his capacity to address the country’s challenges.
POMR made its position known in a statement signed by its spokesman, Idris Zekeri Jnr, on Monday, in response to recent comments by former Labour Party presidential running mate, Dr Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, who reportedly expressed doubts about the ability of any individual, including Obi, to rescue Nigeria from its systemic challenges.
Zekeri said Datti-Baba Ahmed’s position was understandable, given the severity of Nigeria’s problems, but argued that it should not be interpreted as evidence that Obi lacks the capacity to lead reforms.
According to him, Nigeria’s challenges are the result of years of mismanagement, corruption, waste and poor leadership, making it necessary for voters to distinguish between political promises and demonstrated capacity.
He said Obi’s administration in Anambra State offered evidence of his approach to governance, particularly in the areas of fiscal discipline, education, healthcare, infrastructure and human development.
“Peter Obi does not approach Nigeria’s challenges as an experiment. His record in Anambra provides evidence of what he can do with limited resources when public office is treated as a responsibility rather than an opportunity for personal enrichment,” he said.
POMR maintained that rescuing Nigeria would not be the work of one individual acting alone, but argued that the country needed a leader capable of assembling competent Nigerians and building institutions capable of delivering sustainable development.
Zekeri said an Obi-led administration would focus on strengthening institutions, tackling corruption, reducing waste, investing in production and restoring public confidence in government.
“The question is whether Nigeria can elect a leader with the character, competence, prudence and courage to begin the rescue. We believe Peter Obi can, and will,” he said.
He added that Obi should not be presented as a messiah but as a leader whose previous record demonstrated an understanding that public resources constitute a public trust.
Peter Obi, Presidential Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has declared that he is ready to lose his life while protecting his votes in the 2027 election.
Speaking at a town hall meeting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, on Thursday, Obi charged Nigerians to prevent a repeat of the “irregularities” witnessed during the 2023 general election.
In 2023, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) failed to upload election results electronically due to the alleged failure of IReV.
Critics had accused the commission of hiding under the alleged failure of IReV to rig the election against the opposition.
Obi, who ran under Labour Party, and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar who was candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had rejected the declaration of President Bola Tinubu as winner of the election and headed to the court.
But Tinubu’s election victory was upheld by the court.
Speaking at the event tagged: “Obi Talks Nigeria”, the NDC Presidential Candidate said those plotting to manipulate the election would fail in their mission.
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He urged his supporters to go all out and exercise their franchise on election day, saying no one would intimidate them or prevent their votes from counting.
“Nobody will intimidate us again at the polling booth. If you get to any polling booth today, the highest number of officials you see is five. The average number of voters is 40 to 50. There is no way five people will intimidate 50 people.”
“This time all of us will rescue our country. Somebody said, ‘We are ready to die.’ Let me tell you, I’m ready to die too.
“We will make sure we have coordination to ensure that such intimidation does not arise. Yes, they will try to manipulate the IReV. But let me tell you, it will not be easy this time,” he said.
“There will be so many IReVs this time. If there is a network glitch, we will give them another one that has no glitch,” he said.
“By allowing them to continue, that glitch will glitch our lives. That is what we are suffering today,” Obi said.
On his part, NDC Vice Presidential Candidate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, appealed to voters to avoid past mistakes of not choosing competent leaders with the capacity to address the country’s challenges.
He said despite the number of states that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) currently controls, the party will still lose the next election.
“I believe that Nigerians must not make mistakes again. This is the time to get it right. And anything to the contrary, I believe people, if they make a mistake, certainly people will regret making that mistake. Because it will be too costly for the people and the country.”
“Jonathan was the president, the sitting president lost the election. I’ve given you an example, especially those who think because they have over 30 governors, they cannot lose the election. That was a very big mistake,” he said. (Daily Trust)
The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Peter Obi, has criticised the moves by a sitting President to prevent the release of records concerning his past, particularly documents relating to his educational credentials.
In a tweet, the NDC presidential candidate said he was deeply saddened by the direction in which Nigeria was heading, describing it as “profoundly embarrassing” that a sitting President would ask a foreign court to withhold records concerning his past, particularly where such records relate to matters of legitimate public interest.
Obi argued that leadership requires the courage and humility to confront one’s past rather than shield uncomfortable aspects of it from legitimate scrutiny.
“Leadership, in my humble view, demands the courage and humility to confront one’s history — to acknowledge mistakes, provide candid explanations where questions arise, and, where necessary, apologise and seek forgiveness,” he said.
According to him, true authority is strengthened, rather than diminished, when leaders accept responsibility instead of attempting to conceal controversial aspects of their past.
He said the matter becomes even more significant when it concerns educational credentials, stressing that questions surrounding foundational education, including primary and secondary schooling, should not remain unresolved or be addressed principally through legal proceedings.
“Nigerians deserve clear, credible, and verifiable explanations, especially when such had been submitted in the past,” Obi stated.
The former Anambra State governor also expressed concern about the example such conduct could set for the country’s younger generation, particularly the more than 30 million Nigerians currently in school.
He said the highest office in the land should exemplify integrity, accountability, transparency and ethical leadership.
Obi noted that an imperfect past was part of the human condition, but maintained that what mattered was the willingness to confront it with humility and honesty, apologise where necessary, make amends and, when circumstances demand, place the interests of the nation above personal ambition.
He questioned when Nigeria’s political class would fully appreciate that individual ambitions are temporary, while the nation endures.
“When will our political class fully appreciate that individual ambitions are temporary, while the nation endures?” he asked.
Obi further observed that although the Presidency is an office held for only a season, the moral standards established by those who occupy it could influence generations.
He reaffirmed his loyalty to Nigeria, stating that he had never sought citizenship of another country, even when doing so became fashionable.
“Nigeria is greater than any one person, and the integrity of the Republic must always come before the interests of the individual,” he said.
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