A group, Election Transparency Advocacy Coalition, has warned politicians to stop promoting ethnic agenda in Kogi State.
In a press conference on Friday in Lokoja, the group also gave a pass mark to the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC, for conducting a free and fair election in the November 11 governorship election won by Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo.
The coordinators of the coalition, Barrister Oluchi Anabude and Peter Ugwoke, who jointly addressed the press conference, berated some politicians fanning embers of disunity in the state to desist henceforth.
“Those who lost the 2023 governorship election in the state are pouring their frustration on the Independent National Electoral Commission and sponsoring a campaign of calumny against the Commission for performing its constitutional duty.
“Kogi is a state for all who are its indigenes and not an ethnic enclave of any particular tribe, as those merchants of division are making it look like,” they added.
“We are here today in solidarity with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, which has become a target of unfair and wicked propaganda by politicians who are bad losers.
“INEC is doing its best within the political environment it operates in, to deliver free, fair and credible elections in the country, even if under extremely challenging conditions.
“Since that time, politicians from the state who promote atrocious ethnic agenda have been all over the place, running down the commission and sponsoring all sorts of calumny campaigns against INEC for doing its constitutionally assigned duty of conducting elections.
“Kogi is a state for all who are its indigenes and not an ethnic enclave of any particular tribe, as these merchants of division are making it look. They are taking out their frustration on INEC without any justification by being purveyors of falsehood and wicked propaganda to discredit the said election, which they lost woefully.
“INEC is not their problem. Their problem is themselves and their candidate, who did not have the political status and structures to win even his local government. They can only thrive in propaganda and blackmail and these do not win elections but expose those who engage in them as mere noisemakers and serial election losers.
“All lovers of democracy in this country know that the November 11, 2023, governorship election in Kogi State was conducted by INEC with professional competence, which made the election a substantially true reflection of the choice and wishes of the Kogi State electorate.
“All the unnecessary noise being made about BVAS is a product of unfounded allegations that have no basis. That is why these detractors failed woefully to provide any concrete proof or evidence of the phantom allegations they propagate in court. That was why they lost the election and also lost their petition in court. Courts deal with evidence before them, not orchestrated shenanigans by frustrated politicians of no value,” the group said.
The coalition urged INEC not to be distracted by those it described as political merchants of fake news and further commended the electoral body for doing its best.
“We commend INEC for a job well done and at the same time condemn the activities of disgruntled politicians who sponsor atrocious propaganda against the Commission, which has been improving its capacity to conduct seamless elections across the board.
“We urge the Commission to refuse to be distracted by political merchants of fake news and division who are desperate to bring the Commission into disrepute with their narrow ethnic agenda,” they added.
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