The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Sen. Abdullahi Adamu, has described the just concluded governorship election in Ekiti State as a referendum and pointer to the party’s victory in the 2023 general election.

Adamu also described the gubernatorial election as a vote of confidence in the party ahead of the 2023 elections.

He said this while receiving the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) of the United Nations and Head of the UN Office for West and Sahel, Mr. Mahamat Saleh Annadif, at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja on Monday.

Adamu, who was represented by the APC Deputy National Chairman (North), Sen. Abubakar Kyari, said the ruling party was committed to the ideals of democratic governance and observance of rule of law.

He stated that the party would continue to apply the ideals diligently while canvassing for votes ahead of the 2023 general election.

The APC chairman said: “We commend the SRSG for his work in all these areas particularly in addressing the subject of women, peace and security in West Africa and the Sahel region where women have been exposed to egregious violence and human rights abuses of various sorts.

“We wish to inform the SRSG that the APC is poised to go into the general elections in the country with commitment to observing the rule of law and intend to participate peacefully. Bring the ruling Party and one with the largest number of registered members numbering 43 million people, the APC has every stake in the orderly and peaceful conduct of the elections across Nigeria.

“The APC considers the gubernatorial election that recently took place in Ekiti State as a referendum and a vote of confidence in the party and a pointer to 2023 when the Party hopes to form the government in the center and also in most of the states across the six geopolitical zones of the country.

“The APC to assure the entire UN body through the SRSG that the APC is committed to the ideals of democratic governance and observance of rule of law in all its undertakings, and shall continue to apply them diligently while canvassing for votes and while it forms the next national government in 2023.

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“APC is pleased to inform you of the progress made in Nigeria especially in the area of infrastructure development since the APC came into power in 2015. He should reaffirm the commitment of the party to take Nigeria to higher levels of material and cultural development in the coming years particularly by the holistic implementation of the UN SDGs as well as the African Union Agenda 2063 and the AU Programme of Infrastructure Development (PIDA).

“The party reiterates commitment of Nigeria to recharging of the Lake Chad as an urgent priority for the members of the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) which includes Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria. He should also reiterate Nigeria’s desire to reinforce the LCBC Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) towards combatting terrorism and other forms of international crime across our common borders.

“The APC looks forward to further deepening of cooperation between the Office of the SRSG and the APC in all matters of governance towards advancement of ECOWAS, African Union, and United Nations best practices,” Adamu stated.

Adamu further called for a concerted effort of the UN and other international community to support the process of peace-building and reconstruction in Borno State and other parts of the country that have been adversely affected by insurgency and other forms of insecurity.

The APC National Chairman stated that the greatest challenge facing Borno State was adequate funding of the state government’s resettlement projects that would require the reconstruction of entire state and restoration of services like electricity, water and sanitation, and reopening of schools and hospitals in all parts of the state.

On his part, Annadif, who led an 8-member delegation, urged the APC leadership to continue to support peaceful elections in the country.

He said: “We met this morning with officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and we plan to meet with all the key actors in Nigeria with a very simple message. We will like to see the coming elections going peacefully and accepted in all parts of Nigerians. With the APC in power, you have a very important role to play. We will like to emphasize that the UN is with you and supporting you.

“As I like to say, when Nigeria sneezes, the entire region catches cold. So we like and hope that Nigeria stays in good health and be the locomotive for other regions and this is why we will expect the APC to support peaceful elections. Thank you very much for welcoming our delegation and we hope to come back to celebrate the peaceful elections.”

Other APC National Working Committee members at the meeting include the National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu; National Welfare Secretary, F.N. Nwosu; National Auditor, Sen. Abubakar Maikafi; National Legal Adviser, Barr. Ahmad El-Marzuq; among others.

The Star