By Edison Nw’Ogbunka
FCT
The Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG) has advised Nigeria’s president- elect, Sen Bola Ahmed Tinubu and vice president – elect, Kashim Shettima to ensure that they carry all along, by being magnanimous in victory, carrying everybody along, irrespective of tribe, religion, region or political affiliation and to operating an open all inclusive government.
Reading an already prepared speech on behalf of the CNG, in Abuja, the spokesperson of the group, Abdulazeez Suleiman, urged Tinubu to keep to his promises and address the security and economic challenges bedeviling the country.
He said: “Specifically, we congratulate the newly elected President and to remind him that Nigerians trusted him to lead them in the hope for a leadership that will make them more secure and provide their children with a productive future. We urge him to keep to his promise of being just to all sections of the country in terms of spread of federal projects and to be prudent in assembling the team that will assist him in the task of seeing Nigeria through and out of its current limitations around security and the economy; and of leading our nation into a future in which we will live secure lives and pursue livelihoods in a united, strong, prosperous Nigeria whose resources will be protected by leaders.”
Reacting to Obasanjo’s letter, CNG said: “Obasanjo should know that he has long stripped himself of any claim to statesmanship and patriotism, having turned into a potent agent of destabilization. We hold that with this latest action, Obasanjo has finally bared himself of any remaining streak of integrity and the authorities should take steps to strip him of all national honours including the GCON. We also appreciate the manner Nigerians resisted the temptation in the satanic letter of Obasanjo intended to incite them to violence and anarchy and instead chose to offer a verdict for peace and harmony.”
Calling on the judiciary to be fair in dealing with electoral disputes that would come before them for adjudication, CNG however said that it observed some manipulation of votes in the southeast, suggedting that they would react appropriately in subsequent elections.
The group therefore said, the lessons learnt was that while the north, in its usual accommodating spirit and democratic tolerance was able to play decent politics that allowed all candidates of the four major parties secure substantial and in some cases majority votes across northern Nigerian states, the situation was drastically different, particularly in the southeast, where votes were manipulated and confined solely for their son.
“In this regard, and for the avoidance of doubt, the north has heard the message loud and clear and shall pay coin for coin in any elections that may come up now or in the future. Finally, the CNG recommits to its principles of never to lower the bar where the interests of the north, the unity and security of Nigeria, or the welfare of all citizens are involved,” the group concluded.