By Don Peter Okoro
A well known Opinion Moulder, renowned Medical Doctor and former Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association ( NMA) Anambra State Branch, Prof. Obi Nwosu has described the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission,Prof. Mahmood Yakubu as a huge disappointment. He made this clear yesterday during an exclusive interview with Don Peter Okoro at his office in his Hospital,Chimex Specialist Hospital, Abubor Nnewichi Nnewi Anambra State. Reviewing the just conducted Presidential/ National Assembly elections, Prof. Obi Nwosu said:”The Professor, a fellow Professor who piloted the the Electoral affairs,I mean the INEC Chairman is a huge disappointment.
I will categorise him as a Tribesman.He tended towards his own Party. After all, he was a known Card carrying member of the Ruling Party. It was a test of his integrity to know whether he would actually come out and do the rightful thing. There have been cases in the past where people disobeyed the Federal Government, using the authority conferred on them.
We have such people in the past like Prof. Humphrey Nwosu, a fellow Professor, he had integrity. That integrity can never be taken away from him. Nothing stops this INEC Chairman from maintaining his own integrity. No amount of money can equate the evil that he has perpetuated on Nigerians.
Go abroad, you’ll see that most of our people in the diaspora are crying that they want to come back to their country. There’s no place like home. So, I feel bad that this man disappointed everybody.It was a simple thing, conduct this election and do what you promised us.
If he had uploaded the results immediately after the collations, nobody would have been saying anything now. Nobody would give him credit for for conducting this kind of election that he pretended to have done.” On how the election has affected his profession, he replied:”Our practise is being affected and impeded by so many political events in Nigeria.
I’m being affected by the events in the country and I’m saying that this recent Presidential/ NASS election is a total failure and it is regrettable. While many of us have been fighting for Voters apathy to stop, the recent happenings have dampen our own efforts and it is a great disappointment.
I can describe it as Electoral or Voters Banditry. It is a waylaying, stealing and robbery of the people’s mandate. You destroyed their franchise. You did everything bad in a democratic setting. So,I don’t know how else to condemn it, but it is quite condemnable and it is very shameful. There is no doubt that the outgoing Government ( I say outgoing because they must go) have not done well. When the President promised to conduct a free and fair election, we thought it was a genuine promise.
We thought he was going to put up a good legacy for future generations. We thought that with the hard season of lack of funds; it will all contribute to a liberal and democratic election, but here again, the President has failed us. All his previous failures would have been forgotten, if he had done a proper and credible election that he promised.
But you can see that no right thinking person in any part of the world that saw what happened would say that the President did well. And there’s no way that the Electoral People would have been acting in isolation. They were acting with the backing of the President, because the bucks stops at the President’s table.
So I condemn the action and direction that the President of the country has taken to get us here. We are back to square one. We have to go back to the people to start persuading them to have interest and confidence in the voting system again.”. On his words of advice to the to youths of Nigeria, he offered:”My words to the youths is that for the uptemth times,they have been failed again. The country has failed them, but I will always preach peace, but like people would say: You cannot live in peace when there is disorder and people are cheating you.
However, I believe that the best thing to do is to go to court, even though you may not trust them. They should also continue to put pressure on the Government to do the right thing. It’s not too late, Government may listen to them. They should come together and form a formidable force and draw out a plan. This could also be a trap, because the people that did this kind of thing must have also setup their own machineries with guns, in order to kill the youths.If I say you should go out on rampage, that may be the end of your life. It is only someone that is alive that can protest. Another set of people I want to talk to are those who are despairing or distressed. This is cowardly! There is no country that can gain Independence or enjoy democracy dividends without putting up a struggle, but be careful that as you do this, you do not attack the people, the masses, the innocent ones.
That is the tendency, the youths will now go on rampage and at the end of the day, it is the same innocent people that would be made to bear the brunt of it all. So in as much as I do not recommend violent actions,I recommend peaceful demonstration, civil disobedience and coming together to demand for your rights. Thank you.”