The presidency on Saturday insisted that the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in last February’s presidential poll, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu won “a free, fair and credible election”. It described the ballot as the “most transparent election ever conducted in Nigeria since 1999”.
In response to the alarm raised on Friday by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar that there is a sinister plot by the President to undermine the Nigerian judiciary as well as democracy, the Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy, Mr. Dele Alake said that “President Tinubu and the APC absolutely have no reason to undermine the judiciary in the hope of any favourable judgement”.
In an earlier statement in Abuja on Saturday, Atiku’s Media Adviser, Paul Ibe alleged threats from the ruling party “that aim to intimidate the judiciary from serving the duty of justice”.
The spokesman of the PDP candidate said: “It is regrettable that the APC and, indeed, agents of President Bola Tinubu have ceaselessly chosen to stand in the way of justice by making catastrophic threats to anarchy if justice is not served according to their whims.
“These and reports in the media about some heinous plots to harass justices sitting on the petition are ominous to peace and the security of our nation”.
According to him, “since the conclusion of the presidential election in February and the attendant controversies in its trail, there have been unfortunate developments that are saddening to many Nigerians”.
Puncturing holes in Atiku’s claims, the presidential spokesman described the former’s statement as “ill-thought out and illogical”, adding that the former Vice President only engaged in a plot “to undermine the judiciary without providing any shred of evidence. Apart from innuendos, insinuations and outright lies contained in the said press statement, the former Vice President Atiku didn’t put forward any convincing argument to support his claims on how the President Tinubu-led administration and APC sought to undercut, undermine and compromise the judiciary.
“If the former Vice President believes in democracy and the sanctity of the judiciary, as claimed, he would not engage in making spurious and wild allegations aimed at disparaging and discrediting an important arm of government that should serve as the bulwark for our democracy”.
The full statement read: “We have read the laughable and jejune statement by former Vice President and Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Candidate in the last election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
“It is obvious that having been thoroughly defeated by the All Progressives Congress and now President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the former Vice President has not fully recovered from the shock of defeat, hence the current attempt to mischievously rake up another round of inanities that offend basic logic and rational thinking.
“In the ill-thought out and illogical statement, Alhaji Atiku accused the current administration of the governing APC of plotting to undermine the judiciary without providing any shred of evidence. Apart from innuendos, insinuations and outright lies contained in the said press statement, the former Vice President Atiku didn’t put forward any convincing argument to support his claims on how the President Tinubu-led administration and APC sought to undercut, undermine and compromise the judiciary.
“If the former Vice President believes in democracy and the sanctity of the Judiciary, as claimed, he would not engage in making spurious and wild allegations aimed at disparaging and discrediting an important arm of government that should serve as the bulwark for our democracy.
“He shamelessly resorted to this cheap attempt to intimidate and blackmail the Judiciary even when he is party to a case before the Presidential Election Tribunal.
“Let it be said that when it comes to matters of fighting for democracy and democratic ideals, rule of law and independence of Judiciary in Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu stands shoulder above Atiku Abubakar. When President Tinubu was leading the charge against the emasculation of the judiciary and promoting the sanctity of rule of law as the building block for good governance as Governor of Lagos State between 1999-2007, under a PDP central government, Alhaji Atiku was nowhere to be found.
“It is on record and to his eternal credit that President Tinubu, through the instrumentality of the law and Judiciary, successfully challenged many of the draconian and obnoxious decisions of the PDP-led Federal Government that trampled on the rights of the states as federating units. Lagos State under the leadership of the then Governor Tinubu won over 13 cases up to the Supreme Court against the hydra-headed PDP administration at the centre.
“No leader with such a sterling and enviable credential as a champion of rule of law, independence of judiciary like President Tinubu will ever contemplate undermining the Judiciary as alleged by Alhaji Atiku.
“President Tinubu won a free, fair and credible election; the 25th February 2023 presidential election that produced him is the most transparent election ever conducted in Nigeria since 1999.
“President Tinubu and the APC absolutely have no reason to undermine the judiciary in the hope of any favourable judgement.
“His lawyers and that of APC have presented very solid defence of the result of the election and we are sure the judiciary will impartially deliver its ruling on the basis of points of law and evidence before it, not based on presumptuous speculations and unfounded accusations.
“Atiku Abubakar should be honourable enough as a statesman to allow the judiciary perform its sacred duty without harassment and this resort to self-help. Attempting to discredit an important institution of state for selfish political end is disingenuous, shameful and unbecoming of a former Vice President of Nigeria. This desperation must stop”.
