…Rallies Support for PDP
…We’ll Provide Level Playing Field For All Candidates…INEC

Former Vice President, Mr Atiku Abubakar, has said that this weekend’s council election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) should be a referendum on the performance of the incumbent APC administration in the country. This is coming in the wake of the resolve by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to provide a level playing field for all candidates.

Atiku, in a press release signed by his Media Adviser, Mr Paul Ibe on Tuesday, urged residents and members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Abuja, the nation’s capital to come out en masse and exercise their franchise.

The former Vice President notes that the people of the FCT, with their closeness to the seat of power, represent a good sampling of Nigerians about the current government and, therefore, should use “their ballot to tell the APC government how its administration has made life difficult for the common man.”

“The records of performance between the PDP and APC administrations should provide a guide for the way the people of the FCT should cast their ballot on Saturday. I expect every member of the PDP to be proud of the party at this election and even mobilize their families and friends to vote for PDP’s candidates across all the FCT councils on Saturday,” Atiku said.

The 2019 presidential candidate of the PDP also called on all the officials including security agents who will be involved in the conduct of the FCT election to ensure that it is conducted in line with all relevant provisions that will make the process hitch-free and credible.

Chairperson, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu, has said the Commission would ensure a peaceful conduct of the forthcoming council elections in Abuja.

INEC said the election would hold in the 68 wards of the six Area Councils of the Federal Capital Territory. A total of 475 candidates have been cleared by 18 political parties, including Nigeria’s ruling APC and main opposition, PDP, to battle for the chairmanship and councillorship seats in Bwari, Abaji, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Kwali and Abuja Municipal Council (AMAC).

Using the just concluded November 6 governorship election in Anambra State as a yardstick and the growing concerns on insecurity in the FCT , Yakubu, at the consultative meeting with various security agencies, last week Tuesday, said the commission is giving its all to ensure the safety of electorates.

He disclosed that the commission has identified some possible hot spots within its area of coverage for the election and has started making preparations, in collaboration with security agencies to address the threats.

“For our part, the Commission has also been evaluating the risk to the election using the Election Violence Mitigation and Advocacy Tool (EVMAT).

” The aim is to identify early warning signals that could assist the security agencies and other stakeholders in devising and deploying appropriate mitigation strategies. Among other areas of concern, the Commission focused on threats specific to geographical locations, proliferation of small arms and light weapons, the issue of hard drugs, presence of insurgents and armed groups, intra and inter-party conflicts, and incidents of hate speech.

“The hard copy of the summary of the threats and frequency of incidents is included in your folders for this meeting,” he said in his address read at the meeting.

The INEC also revealed it will deploy 12,000 ad hoc personnel for the FCT election. During a town hall meeting with women groups and gender-focused civil society organisations in Abuja, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for FCT, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, also assured that the commission would provide a level-playing field for all candidates in the election.

Bello, who was represented by the FCT Administrative Secretary of INEC, Mr. Waziri Zannah, at the event organised by the commission, in collaboration with European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES), expressed the commission’s readiness to conduct a free and fair poll.

He charged women groups to sensitise and mobilise youths and other women to come out en masse during the election and vote for their preferred candidates.

Bello said: “It is high time women came out en masse to participate in the electoral process. The commission provides a level-playing ground for all eligible voters. It will count everyone’s vote and will be transparent in the election.”

“In the meantime, CSOs have a duty to perform after this function because our CSOs and the women groups are to enlighten our youths. In any elections, whenever there is a problem, it is our youths. These youths are your sons and brothers, and they listen to you as their mothers and sisters. They need to be educated on the need to have a peaceful election,” he added.

The Deputy Project Coordinator, ECES, Wilson Manji, urged election stakeholders to ensure balanced voting rights for all, especially women because they constitute a sensible percentage that cannot be disregarded in society.

Director, Gender and Inclusivity Department, INEC, Blessing Obidegwu, stressed the need for women groups and CSOs to strategise and facilitate the inclusion of women in the election.

Obidegwu described the equal participation of women and men in all aspects of public life as a key principle of democracy, noting that the place of gender equality in democracy cannot be overemphasised.

“Women constitute almost half of the country’s population and form a critical mass of voters; so they cannot be ignored.

“CSOs, women leaders and all those responsible or concerned are to strategise and facilitate the process of enabling the active participation of women, by ensuring that identified challenges are mitigated, if not completely eradicated, before the election,” she stated.