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President met with Obanikoro, Gani Adams, Agbaje, so what? — Presidency

The Presidency yesterday admitted that President Goodluck Jonathan met in Lagos with Messers Musiliu Obanikoro,Jimmy Agbaje and Gani Adams, but denied that the purpose was to rig today’s elections in Lagos State as alleged by the APC.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said “nothing unusual happened” during  the meeting  or during  his principal’s visit to Lagos ,while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) dismissed the APC allegations as false.

Abati,reacting  in a statement to the APC allegations  said: “ President Jonathan visited Lagos. He arrived on Thursday and left on Friday. People visited him. So what? Anytime the President is in Lagos or any part of the country, a lot of people come to pay homage to him. Nothing unusual happened during his last visit to Lagos.


“Senator Musiliu Obanikoro’s visit to the President in Lagos is not something that anybody should use to play politics. Koro is a Minister of the Federal Republic. He came to see his boss.”
He also said that he did not see how the visit of the governorship candidate of the PDP in Lagos state, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, to the President, who is the leader party, should become an issue.

“Yes, Gani Adams also visited, but so did a lot of other people.” he added
Abati said the APC spokesman was  rude and off course to suggest that the President was in Lagos to perfect any plan to rig.

His words: “President Jonathan visited Lagos. He arrived on Thursday and left on Friday. People visited him. So what? Anytime the President is in Lagos or any part of the country, a lot of people come to pay homage to him. Nothing unusual happened during his last visit to Lagos.”
Abati also said  that the President did not hold meetings with INEC officials, the police, or polling officials or with anybody who is involved in organizing elections.

“So to say that the President went to Lagos to supervise the rigging of today’s election is most uncharitable and cruel,” he said.

He added: “After the presidential election, the President immediately congratulated Gen. Buhari and the whole world has commended him for saving Nigeria. President Jonathan’s sportsmanship, statesmanship and leadership saved this country at that critical moment.

“He has demonstrated his commitment to free and fair elections, the rule of law and due process. He has shown that he is a man of character, honour and integrity. Nigerians generally are proud of him.  He has left a worthy legacy and shown a great example. That, obviously, is the narrative that Lai Mohammed and his masters want to change, so they are now cooking up meaningless tales.

“Lai Mohammed should look for another target and leave the President alone. His fatuous tale does not make any sense. I repeat: we will like to advise that the APC should just leave the President alone. President Jonathan was a candidate in the presidential election; he did not rig the election. Why would he want to rig tomorrow’s (today’s) elections?”

In a separate statement in Abuja,the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP,Chief Olisa Metuh,    called the APC allegations  unwarranted and unnecessary as they are capable of raising tension.

 He said: “The APC must desist from its propaganda, lies and false alarms, especially bearing in mind that it did not win the presidential election on account of such.

“Nigerians are no longer in the mood for such politics as they have since moved ahead in celebration of the deepening of our democracy by the PDP-led administration.

“The PDP successfully nurtured democracy in the last 16 years with attendant benefits to the people. Unfortunately, concerns are already heightening that the APC may not sustain this legacy given its disreputable disposition to national issues and ceaseless resort to propaganda and deceit.

“We are aware that the APC leader and President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, has gone to about 12 states meeting and campaigning for his party’s candidates and wonder why the APC should fret about President Goodluck Jonathan’s meeting with our candidates in Lagos.

“President Jonathan has with the 2015 general elections proven beyond all doubts that he is a true democrat committed to free, fair and credible elections, a fact for which he has continued to receive accolades from well-meaning Nigerians and the international community.

“Finally, we call on Lagosians to disregard this latest false alert and come out en masse today to exercise their constitutionally guaranteed right. In the same vein, we charge INEC and security forces to ensure that the elections are free, fair and credible not only in Lagos, but also in other states of the federation”.

Credit: Thenationonlineng

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