Postponing 2015 poll morally dubious, says Atiku

Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), believes it is “morally dubious” for the Nigerian government to consider postponing the 2015 elections.

He was reacting to a statement credited to Sambo Dasuki, national security adviser, that the elections should be postponed to allow permanent voter cards (PVCs) get to all eligible and registered voters.

“Yes, we have a problem with the distribution of PVCs, but the position of my party, the APC, is that since we have a voter register then that should be used in conducting the elections,” he said.

“I also believe there is enough time between now and the elections to issue everyone with their PVCs. The call made by the national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, for a postponement of the elections scheduled next month, was uncalled for and portends a dangerous signal about the intentions of the federal government to conduct a free, fair and credible poll in February.”

Atiku, who was just returning to the country after a trip abroad, said he was “strong, healthy and happy to be back to lend his support to the train of change sweeping across the country”.

“The duty of participating in the process of change, which our great party, the APC is committed to, supersedes every other consideration,” he said.

“For me, participating in this campaign is a call to national duty. It is a duty which we cannot afford to compromise upon and we must press into the consciousness of those at the helms of affairs that it is morally dubious and socially unacceptable to extend the dates of the elections by a single day from the scheduled timelines.”