POLITICS 26/05/2023
Proceeding With Tinubu’s Inauguration Unconstitutional – Datti
Four days to the swearing in of the President-Elect, Bola Tinubu, as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Vice Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed has reiterated that, the swearing would amount to Anti-Democracy.
Datti spoke to the gathering of Labour Party (LP) eight Senators-elect, 36 Federal House of Representatives members elect and other elected officials of the Labour Party in Abuja.
Speaking to the audience through a Zoom telecast, Datti said that the Nigeria owe themselves the situation to continue with the alleged impunity of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to Scot free of its alleged wrong declaration of the All Progressives Congress (APC), candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of the February election and have him sworn in, by May 29, 2023.
He maintained that swearing in the President-elect, Tinubu would amount to the death of democracy in Nigeria.
According to him, Nigerians are the International Community of the country, whatever they stood with settles the support that would come to the nation over the February 25 election.
In his Zoom speech, which was interrupted by applause variously Datti said; “What is about to happen on the 29th of May is outright unconstitutionality, I repeat, outright unconstitutionality. To any effect and for want of time.
“I refer you to an earlier comment I made on the same subject, nothing has rattled the Tinubu group and the APC like the submission of a simple fact, what is that simple fact?
“Swearing in an unconstitutionally qualified, unconstitutional President elect, to serve as the President and commander in chief of Nigeria is ending democracy, I repeat, is ending democracy.
“It is within the right of all Nigerian people to engage with constitutional, legal and peaceful act, that will protect the Nigerian Constitution. Nigeria is a nation because we have a constitution.”
According to him, “We are due in the Courts. The courts, the Presidential Candidate, myself. The courts, the candidate, that is Peter Obi and I and our final cause for the common man. The judiciary is not the last call.
“The common man, is the last hope of the common man. So severe was their desperation, that for the first time you all came along with a constitutional breach.
“Never in the history of the Fourth Republic has there been any, President-Elect that could not win even 25% of the FCT?
“The constitution comes interpreted. And it is to be followed, at operational times such as an ongoing presidential election, what happen then, was an outright criminality, outright unconstitutionality, to issue a certificate of return to an individual who did not not, certify the constitutional requirements.
He Maintained that then “Any President is a president because there is a constitution. When that constitution is violated, there is a question mark on that President and there is a question mark on that Presidency.
“The office of the President of Nigeria is a political one. The office of the commander in chief, Federal – Republic of Nigeria is a professional one. No one must play with this office, No constitution is to be violated in order to carry out the duties of this exalted office and this is what we are all about.
Datti said the only way for the alleged electoral fraud to grant legitimacy to the Tinubu presidency would be that it compromised the figure of the Federal Capital Territory, to make Tinubu a winner.
His words: “I did go to the extra length of a proferring a political electoral solution to the APC and their apologist, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), that It is safer for them to rig, that it is safer for Nigeria and it is safer for Democracy for them to go in the same way they rigged other states, and other figures; it is safer for us as a nation to make good and rig another six per cent in the F.C.T and add it to themselves. Since they have all the powers and all the money. It is better for them to do this to swear in Alhaji Bola Tinubu and Mallam Shetima.
“It is not too late, INEC has always cooperated with them. It is madness
It is unconstitutional to swear in Alhaji Tinubu and Mallam Shettima, as the results are today.
“Nigerians wake up, Nigeria is yours. You are our own International community, We Nigerians are our own international Community, anything that we do not do, the World will sit and lament with us we sit and lament with us.
“We won this election. Peter Obi,Labour party and my humble self won this election, within one year from when Peter Obi exited the old party and formed this movement till today, it is barely one year, barely one year.
The Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party said the sterling performance of Peter Gregory Obi in the February election was a feat to be continually celebrated, especially as it diminished the established politicians through the will of the people.
According to Datti, “We defeated a total of 47 years presidential election experience in that of Atiku Abubakar and Bola Ahmed Tinubu from 1992 to date for Atiku Abubakar and 2007 to date for Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“This is not to say how humorous Peter Obi is, this is to say how powerful the Nigerian People are. If the Nigerian People are that powerful within One year mydefeat 47 years, the Nigerian people are powerful enough to protect the Nigerian Constitution,x Datti said to the elected candidates on the platform of the PDP at the Abuja Summit.