Former Military Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd) on Wednesday in Minna, Niger state capital, observed that the political journey of Nigeria and her citizenry has been through turbulence but was slowly and steadily getting better by the day.
Abdulsalami also stated that part of the worrisome trends which he encouraged Nigerians, the electorates and key political actors, in particular, to join hands to tackle in the build-up to next year’s general election is the issue of vote-buying and campaign of calumny.
General Abdulsalami spoke to journalists at his hilltop residence ahead of Nigeria’s 62nd Independence celebrations, saying, “We still have well noticeable setbacks in our polity. Some electorates are still selling their votes and politicians on the other hand are encouraging the selling and buying of votes.”
The former Head of State also encouraged politicians, particularly those contesting elective positions and their supporters to play by the rules of the game by dwelling on campaigns that are issue-based campaigns and not embark on campaigns of calumny.
While appealing to the electorates not to sell their votes in the forthcoming general elections as doing so amounts to sabotage and a lack of patriotism for the country, General Abdulsalami who argued that Nigeria will continue to evolve politically said, “your vote is your franchise.
“There are some setbacks, some electorates are still selling their votes, and the politicians are still encouraging the selling and buying of votes. I think this is a negative part that we are experiencing and I thought indeed Nigerians and all of us should put our heads together and all hands should be on deck to ensure that this phenomenon is brought to an end.”
Abdulsalam said he expects the 2023 election to be better than that of 2015. “I hope the electorates will bear in mind that it is their franchise to ensure that they vote for people of proven integrity calibre as their choice. And for God’s sake, nobody should go and sell his or her vote,” he stated.
“Don’t sell your franchise. I am happy some people are realizing and educating other people not to sell their votes”, the former President said as he also challenged politicians not to embark on campaigns of calumny as doing so would overheat the polity.
“As we go into the 2023 general elections campaign, there shouldn’t be abusive words in our campaigns. But as much as possible indulge in campaigns of tolerance because I know each politician is trying to sell his manifesto or that of his party”, adding that campaigns should be centred on telling Nigerians what you want to do for them if voted into office.
The elder statesman, however, expressed optimism that Nigeria and her citizenry will be better-off as politicians continue to learn from their mistakes and get it right someday, adding that “Since the year 1999, politicians and indeed Nigerians have been strengthening democracy and trying to make it look better every day.”
Abdulsalami stated, “Of course, there are pitfalls as we went along. We made mistakes and gradually our politicians are correcting these mistakes and the politicians are also learning by the day from past mistakes.”
On the lingering crisis that has kept most campuses closed due to the face-off between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal Government, the former President said, “I am sure there would be a solution soon.”
