PDP condemns Tinubu’s victory, says ‘we want credible election’

The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar on Monday, March 6, 2023 led stakeholders of his party on a protest to the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Abuja, the country’s capital over the February 25, 2023 presidential election.

The Informant247 gathered that among the stakeholders of the party who were present at the protest ground was the national Chairman of the party, Senator Iyorchia Ayu.

The national chairman of the party issued a party protest letter to the electoral commission, rejecting the outcome of the presidential election and calling for the cancellation of the election.

He implored the electoral commission to organize and conduct a credible election.

“On behalf of the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the teeming members of the PDP, we present this protest letter to INEC, addressed to the Commission Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.

“We do not accept the charades of what has been presented to Nigeria people as election and what has been declared.

“We, therefore call on INEC not only to cancel the election but to re-conduct a very credible election, not only to Nigerians but also the international community,” Ayu said.

While receiving the protest letter, the national commissioner for information of the electoral commission, Festus Okoye, thanked the party for a peaceful protest.

He promised to forward the protest letter to the right authorities for due action.

“I have received this letter on behalf of the commission, if there are remedial issues to be dealt with, we are going to deal with those remedial issues. This commission is for the Nigeria people. Our allegiance is to the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“This commission does not have allegiance to any political party or candidate, our allegiance is to the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Okoye said.

The spokesperson for Atiku/Okowa campaign organization said: “You were there during the collation when Yakubu promised Nigerians that he would review the collation. Has he review it?

“We are asking him to review the collation just as he has promised. He should review it,” Ologbondiyan said.

“We have a right to this pretest and we are expressing it to the world to know that what Yakubu has done is a total disregard to constitution and all the electoral status in Nigeria.

“That is what we are expressing and we have right to it. As a corporate citizens to protest and we are protesting it,” he said.

The Informant247 recalls that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Senator Bola Tinubu as the winner of the presidential election.

According to INEC, Tinubu came victorious with 8.8 million votes.

The presidential candidate of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar came second with 6.9 million votes.

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi, had 6.1 million votes.

Atiku and Obi who were not comfortable with the outcome of the February 25 presidential election have filed petitions at the election tribunal to challenge the emergence of Tinubu as the Nigerian leader.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday, March 6, 2023 said it has no connection with any political party or any candidate.