Adamawa suspends activities of NGOs over alleged partisanship

Governor Ahmadu Fintiri has suspended activities of both local and international Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Adamawa State till after the gubernatorial and House of Assembly elections held on March 11.

In a statewide broadcast, yesterday, at Government House, Yola, the governor accused the NGOs of abandoning their constitutional duties of providing humanitarian services to engage in partisan politics.

He said: “It has been discovered that most NGOs have swallowed the bug and are dabbling into politics in the name of providing humanitarian assistance to the people. Government cannot fold its arms and watch such so-called NGOs mislead the people and inject divisive tendencies into their psyche.

“In view of the foregoing and in furtherance of our desire to reorder the electoral behaviour of our people and remove the influence of the NGOs, which have reduce the statutory mandate to that one of vote buying machine, government has decided to suspend activities of local and international NGOs throughout the state until March 15, 2023, when the elections are done.”

Fintiri added: “This is done in good faith and in furtherance of our desire to deepen our democracy and protect the humanitarian mandate of the NGOs. Let us learn to put the interest of the country above any other primordial interest.

“There is no time to waste. We all know the threats that further hesitation will bring.”
The governor commended the people for trooping out en-masse to exercise their civic responsibility during the presidential election.

“Your conduct during and after the elections have been peaceful, orderly, exemplary and commendable.
“This is the true reflection of Adamawa State as the Home of Peace and bastion of democracy,” he said.

He urged the citizens to remain calm while awaiting announcement of the final outcome of the presidential poll.