Nigerians, let peace prevail

By now Nigerians, at home and in the diaspora, as well as the entire world are waiting with bated breath as the results of the presidential and National Assembly elections which held across the country yesterday begin to trickle in.

For obvious reasons, all attention has been on the presidential election, which has been described as the most keenly contested since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule 16 years ago. Although 14 parties took part in the presidential election, it was clear from the very beginning that the real contest was between the People’s Democratic Party and the All Progressives Congress. Undoubtedly, whoever eventually emerges winner between the candidates of the two parties – Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, respectively – will determine the direction of the country in the next four years.

As we await the announcement of the results by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC), we appeal to all concerned parties to bear one thing in mind: in every contest there must be a winner and a loser. And an election is clearly a contest, not a warfare.

Prior to the election, there were predictions that the election itself would be largely peaceful but there might be flashes of violence as the results are announced. And there were also palpable apprehension among Nigerians, which led many into making huge cash withdrawals and stocking food items and other basic needs in anticipation of the worst.

Now that the election itself has been conducted, we emphasise that post-election violence, or any form of violence, is man-made and therefore avoidable. As such, the onus is on all Nigerians – politicians and the voting public alike – to ensure that this self-fulfilling prophecy does not come true. For us, Nigeria can least afford a repeat of the post-election carnage we saw in parts of the North in 2011.

It is for this reason that we insist that peace must prevail in this post-election period. We repeat, for the umpteenth time, that no politician’s ambition, no matter how highly placed, is worth the blood of any Nigerian. The youth of this country must, therefore, not allow themselves to be used by anyone as agents of destruction.

We also continue to urge candidates of all the political parties to guard their utterances and avoid inciting comments that might lead to violence. Win or lose, it is our considered view that candidates, their parties and supporters must not take up arms.

We recall the words of Kofi Annan, former secretary-general of the United Nations, at the signing of the inter-party agreement on nonviolence by the major political parties in Abuja on January 14, that political parties must “urge all your candidates and their supporters not to resort to violence if they do not win”. This is instructive.

We also recall that after the governorship election in Ekiti State last year, the then incumbent governor, Kayode Fayemi, conceded defeat and quickly congratulated the winner, Ayo Fayose. This is the example we expect candidates in yesterday’s presidential election to follow.

In the event that a candidate feels aggrieved enough not to accept the results as announced, such a candidate and his or her supporters must not take out their grievance on innocent Nigerians. The responsible thing to do, for us, is to seek redress through the elections tribunal.

We re-iterate: Nigeria – its continued unity and stability – is bigger that the ambition of all politicians put together.