Amid rising verbal and physical attacks ahead of the nation’s general election, the Pan Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has expressed concern over the attacks characterising election campaigns in various parts of the country.
Afenifere in press statement signed by its national publicity secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, advised political parties and their candidates to focus on issues regarding how they will tackle the myriad of challenges facing the country rather than coming up with utterances and actions that border on “de-marketing of opponents and possibly causing bodily harms on other people”.
It would be recalled that politicians are, of late, hurling serious verbal attacks against one another while physical attacks have also been reported in a few places. Afenifere stated that some attacks even led to the loss of some lives.
The group maintained that Nigerian politicians ought to have matured beyond the seeming villainy they currently display.
It submitted that the verbal attacks emanating from some candidates and their spokespersons were encouraging their unscrupulous supporters to violently attack opponents in a manner that could result in bloodshed.
Last week, Mr Festus Keyamo (SAN), came up with various allegations against the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Also, the spokesman of PDP, Hon Debo Ologunagba, accused the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu, of directing “his party members to unleash violence on Nigerians”. Ologunagba alleged that Tinubu gave this directive at a closed-door event in London that “inadvertently leaked to the public.”
“The aim of the APC was to hit our nation with violence…. The design is to create tension across the country to validate a narrative that elections cannot hold, then orchestrate a Constitutional crisis with a view to justifying a shifting of the elections and perpetuate certain APC elements in office beyond May 29, 2023,” Ologunagba alleged in a statement he issued on Wednesday, December 21, 2022.
Afenifere noted that earlier last week, a man suspected to be one of the supporters of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, was allegedly tortured by some unknown men at Oraifite in the Ekwusigo local government area of Anambra State.
It noted that a video clip that has been circulating on social media showed the leader of the unknown gunmen threatening that anyone caught wearing or putting on any campaign material of politicians would be severely dealt with.
It said on Friday, January 20, 2023 three persons were reportedly injured, following double explosions that rocked a rally by the APC, at the Rumu-Woji Play Ground, also known as Ojukwu Field in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Expressing serious concern over the escalating violence in spite of various peace accords signed by presidential candidates, Afenifere disclosed that a research organization, SB Morgan had, in a report at the end of last year revealed that 27 Nigerians were killed in 57 politically-motivated violent incidents between January and December 2022.
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