President Muhammadu Buhari has implored Nigerians to vote the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the next general elections to forestall instability in the country and the West African region.
Buhari, who spoke yesterday while receiving a delegation from Nasarawa State, led by Governor Abdullahi Sule, at the State House, Abuja, noted that voting the ruling party will also guarantee continuity in the polity
He said the off-season elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun states had confirmed his administration’s irreversible commitment to credible and violence-free polls in the country.
The president, in a statement issued by his spokesman, Femi Adesina, told the high-powered delegation that the Electoral Act, signed by him earlier this year, was an attestation to the fulfillment of the administration’s determination and commitment to the tenets of the rule of law.
‘‘On the issues of credible, free and fair elections in the country, I have always re-assured my listeners, both at home and abroad, of my personal desire; and indeed, the priority of this administration is to bequeath to our country, an irreversible political process that continues to be both democratic and acceptable to the people.
‘‘My desire for our country is that the 2023 elections should clearly mark the commencement of the institutional strength of our electoral body in conducting acceptable, credible and violence-free elections.
‘‘The forthcoming general elections will provide us with the opportunity to convince the electorate of the need for continuity to enable our party to consolidate on our achievements in the last seven years.
‘‘The government and people of Nasarawa State, as usual, have a great role to play in returning our party to governance in the 2023 elections in order to create a path for greater socio-economic growth and development. This is not only important for Nigeria alone but also the West African sub-region,” he stated.
President Buhari, who stated that Nasarawa remained very dear to his heart, described the state as a symbol of hope and determination in a collective effort to entrench democracy in Nigeria.
Governor Sule told the president that the delegation, comprising political office holders, royal fathers and community leaders, was in the Villa to thank the president for approving the federal government’s takeover of the Lafia airport, refunds for the completion of the Lafia-Keffi road, ongoing construction of the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi dual carriage road, and the appointment of prominent sons and daughters of the state into different positions in the federal government, among others