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Nigerians abroad urge ‘true democracy’, regret flawed elections

By Kelvin Ebiri, Port Harcourt
11 June 2018   |   4:20 am
Nigerians in the Diaspora have tasked fellow citizens on rebirth of true democracy in the country. They regretted that the nation had witnessed series of flawed elections and abuse of power since...

Comrade Sunny Ofehe

Nigerians in the Diaspora have tasked fellow citizens on rebirth of true democracy in the country. They regretted that the nation had witnessed series of flawed elections and abuse of power since the annulment of the June 12, 1993 polls by the General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) military administration.

The Executive Director, Hope for Niger Delta Campaign (HNDC), The Netherlands, Comrade Sunny Ofehe, while acknowledging June 12 as Democracy Day, stressed that only true democracy guarantees equal opportunities for everyone and conduct of free, fair and non-violent polls.

He demanded that elected officers should be accountable to their constituencies and constituents.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant in Delta State for the coming 2019 general elections said he was sure that those who truncated June 12 must have been regretting the current state of the country.

Ofehe, who described the annulled election as a near perfect one, noted that subsequent electoral commissions have struggled in vain to match the standard it set.

His words: “I believe, as an activist and for other of my colleagues, we want to see a new and true democracy with all its antecedents. We want to see free and fair elections without violence and killings. We want people, who see themselves as credible leaders, to get the opportunity to contest elections and seek for votes without hindrance.”

“Nigerians, through June 12 annulment, showed the extent they can unify to fight a common cause. It also shows that Nigerians can rally support for any political candidate with track record. This was shown to some extent in the election that brought President Muhammadu Buhari to power. The June 12 incident also showed that elections can still be won in Nigeria with the right message.”

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