Don’t abort Nigeria’s fledging democracy – Onitiri warns politicians
Renowned socio-political activist and critic, Chief Adesunbo Onitiri, has advised all aggrieved politicians in the February 25th presidential election against actions capable of aborting Nigeria’s hard-earned fledging democracy.
In a statement in Lagos yesterday, Onitiri said the way and manner politicians who lost in the election were pursuing their alleged lost mandate posed serious danger to the survival of the nation.
He cautioned that as one of the activists who fought and put their lives on the line to install the present fledgling democracy, the democrats would not allow a group of politicians to pull the nation down.
“The February 25th elections have come and gone. A winner has been declared. Let us all put the elections behind us and move on to salvage the country.
“The best man may not necessarily win the election. Definitely we may not all like the winner. But let us all embrace the process and start the healing process.
“It’s only God that can install a leader or President of a country. As Democrats, we are all winners and in the interest of our nation, we must move on,” he pleaded.
The activist said the Democrats and other Nigerians would not allow politicians whatever their grievances, burn down the country.
“Nigeria he emphasised, belongs to us all and we have no other country we can call our own.
As a stakeholder and concerned democrat, I wish to implore other aggrieved presidential candidates to employ all peaceful means to express their grievances within the confines of the law and our constitution.
“They should also call their supporters and followers to order and adopt peaceful means of handling the election disputes.”
Onitiri called on the winner to be very magnanimous in victory by forming a government with national spread to ensure unity and love.
The social critic also saluted the other presidential candidates for contesting the polls so keenly and competitively.
He urged them to emulate former President Goodluck Jonathan during the 2015 presidential election, who handed over power peacefully to President Muhammadu Buhari and said his”victory didn’t deserve the blood of any Nigerian.”
“We Democrats fought with our blood for this fledging democracy and it should not be aborted. We salute the immense contributions of the matyr of democracy, late MKO Abiola, the matriarch, late Alhaja Kudirat Abiola and many others.
“May their gentle and beloved souls rest in perfect peace”, he prayed.
Onitiri added: “All that the new Federal government needs to work on, is how to embrace every section of the country as well as deepen our democracy and provide good governance to the people.”
It will be recalled that during the June 12,1993 presidential election, Senator Arthur Nzeribe and his ABN got a court injunction overnight to stop the election.
