The Federal Government of Nigeria has issued a warning to the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, for allegedly inciting violence following the outcome of the Presidential elections.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, gave the warning during his official engagements with some international media organizations in Washington DC.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Minister is in Washington to engage with international media organizations and Think-tanks about the just concluded 2023 polls.
During his engagements with media organizations such as the “Washington Post”, Voice of America, Associated Press, and Foreign Policy Magazine, the Minister condemned Obi’s actions, stating that it is wrong for him to seek redress in court and simultaneously incite people to violence.
The Minister accused Obi and his Vice, Datti Ahmed, of threatening Nigerians that if the President-elect, Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), is sworn in on May 29, it will be the end of democracy in Nigeria, which he described as treason.
He emphasized that inviting insurrection is a dangerous act, and Obi’s statement is that of a desperate person, contrary to his claim of being a Democrat.
The Minister stated that both Obi and Atiku Abubakar, the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), failed to meet the constitutional requirements to be declared as president.
He explained that the constitution has stringent criteria for anybody who wants to be president of the country, which include having the plurality of votes cast in an election, scoring one-quarter of votes cast in at least 25 states, and other requirements.
The Minister also pointed out that only the President-elect met the criteria by scoring 8.79 million votes and having one-quarter of all the votes cast in 29 states of the federation.
Atiku, who came second with 6.9 million votes, was only able to make one-quarter of the votes cast in 21 states. Obi, who came third with 5.8 million votes, won only one-quarter of the votes cast in 15 states. Therefore, the Minister said that Obi’s complaint of fraud is baseless, as he has not disowned his victory in Lagos, but failed to meet the constitutional requirements.
The Minister further explained that he is in the United States to correct negative narratives promoted by naysayers and opposition on the election.
He emphasized that the opposition, having lost in the election, is alleging fraud, calling for its cancellation and the constitution of the interim government.
The Minister stated that the just concluded general elections in Nigeria are the fairest, most transparent, and authentic in the history of Nigeria, as a result of the introduction of the Bimodal Voters Verification System (BVAS), which he regards as a game-changer.
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