The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says President Muhammadu Buhari’s statement that the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the 2023 presidential election due to the overconfidence of the opposition parties has shown he is an approval of election rigging.

Buhari had said the opposition parties were a victim of overconfidence during the 2023 general election while the ruling APC was working hard to retain power.

The President, while speaking at his residence in the State House where he received the APC governors on Thursday, April 27, said the overconfidence of the opposition parties was the main reason they lost the February 25, 2023, presidential election to the ruling party.

Reacting, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, April 28, said President Buhari’s statement revealed the utter disregard he has for Nigeria’s democracy, judiciary, and the Will of the citizens.

Ologunagba stated that the presidential poll was marred by “brazen violation of the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act, 2022, INEC Regulations and Guidelines; manipulation of processes, alteration of genuine results from Polling Units, announcement of fabricated figures and climaxed by the vexatious declaration of the defeated candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu as winner.”

He stressed that the general despondency, resentment, and anger across the country and the damning reports by election observers after the declaration of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, as the winner of the presidential election were ominous testaments that he does not have the mandate of majority of Nigerians derivable “only from a credible electoral process”.

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“Nigerians and the International Community are therefore appalled, horrified, and scandalized by the careless, unguarded, and subjudice comment by President Buhari in which he attempted to justify the rigging of the February 25, 2023, Presidential election by the APC under his watch.

“This statement reveals the utter disregard that General Buhari has for our Constitutional democracy, judiciary, and the Will of the Nigerian people as expressed at the February 25, 2023 Presidential election.

It is, to say the least, reprehensible for Mr. President to posture and gloat over the trampling of the Will of Nigerian, blame the opposition for being overconfident and, according to him, for not being ‘tactical’, perhaps enough to outwit the violence, brutality, threats, suppression of voters, rigging and election manipulations by the APC and the government which he heads.

“It is unpardonable that President Buhari, who swore to uphold the laws of our country and made several commitments to the world to ensure free, fair, credible and transparent election, is rather in approval of election rigging through manifest compromise of INEC system and wide-spread alteration, falsification and switching of election results in favour of his rejected party, the APC.

“President Buhari is practically gloating over the undermining of democracy by INEC which refused to transmit directly results from the Polling Units to its Server/Website and announce same, in total violation of the express provisions of Section 64 Sub-section 4 (a) (b) of the Electoral Act, 2022,” the PDP spokesman said.

Ologunagba noted that the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, “clearly won the February 25, 2023, Presidential election as shown by the authentic results from majority of Polling Units across the country.”

He maintained that the PDP did not lose the just-concluded presidential election as claimed by President Buhari, adding that the opposition party will not surrender the “mandate freely given to our party by the people irrespective of the threats, bullying, and manipulation by the APC-led administration.”

The PDP spokesperson further stated that Nigerians believed and expected Buhari to leave a legacy of a free, fair, and credible election based on his numerous undertakings and promises but the President is leaving “an ignoble, dishonorable and disgraceful legacy of enabling and superintending over the worst election conducted in the history of democracy in Nigeria.”

Ologunagba, however, called on the International Community to impose sanctions, including Visa ban and travel restrictions on President Buhari and his family immediately he vacates office on May 29, 2023, for undermining Nigeria’s democracy.

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He said the demand for sanction was in line with President Buhari’s request on February 17, 2022, in Brussels, Belgium, where he called on the European Union (EU) to impose “weighty sanctions” on those engaged in “unconstitutional change of governments” as well as those influencing the “process and outcomes of elections”.

The PDP spokesman added: “The PDP also demands an open investigation into the roles played by President Buhari in the undermining of democracy in Nigeria in the 2019 and 2023 Presidential elections.

“President Buhari needs to advised to be circumspect and allow the judicial process to proceed without further undue interference and bullying by him.

“The PDP appreciates Nigerians for standing firm in defending our democracy at this critical time. As a party, we will never relent in our determination to retrieve our presidential mandate through the tribunal no matter the machination of the APC.”

The Star