…As Aisha Yesufu Questions Military Presence At Protest

Former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has joined other protesters as demonstrations against the Senate’s rejection of mandatory electronic transmission of election results continued in Abuja on Tuesday.

The protest, which began on Monday, is opposed to the Senate’s decision to reject real-time electronic transmission of election results.

Amaechi, who attended the protest with his son—a medical doctor—said he brought him along in case the demonstration turns violent and injuries are sustained.

The former Minister of Transportation explained that he came with his son to demonstrate his belief that during major protests, leaders should be at the forefront with their families.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) called on Nigerians to rise up, adding that all opposition parties ought to be on the streets to protest the Senate’s decision.

Amaechi alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is opposed to electronic transmission of election results because it fears losing elections.

“I believe that the opposition parties should come out—PDP, ADC, everybody should be out—to protest against the attempt of one party,” Amaechi said.

“If we come out, and they say the opposition has hijacked (the protest), what is APC doing? Are they not hijacking? What are they afraid of? I thought they said they have 31 governors. Tinubu is not Jonathan. The only way a good politician will know he has done well is by the people.”

He questioned why the party would be afraid, despite having several opposition governors and prominent politicians defecting to its ranks.

He further stated that while Senate President Godswill Akpabio and President Bola Tinubu may ignore the demands of Nigerians, opposition parties and civil society organisations would persist until the decision is reversed.

Meanwhile, operatives of the Nigeria Police Force barricaded major roads leading to the National Assembly, where the Senate is scheduled to hold an emergency plenary session on Tuesday.

The protest is being led by human rights activist Aisha Yusuf, alongside several civil society groups that initiated the demonstration on Monday.

Meanwhile, Human rights activist, Aisha Yesufu, has renewed calls for mandatory real-time electronic transmission of election results, while questioning the deployment of soldiers to protests at the National Assembly in Abuja.

Yesufu spoke on Tuesday at the protest ground in Abuja, where demonstrators gathered under the “Occupy National Assembly” campaign to oppose the Senate’s rejection of a clause mandating real-time electronic transmission of election results.

“All we are asking for is real-time electronic transmission of the electoral results. We are here, and we are waiting for the lawmakers we sent to Abuja to pass the bill the way it should be passed. All citizens are asking for is electronic transmission, real-time. I do not see any reason why that is a problem,” Yesufu said.

The activist also criticised the presence of soldiers at the protest venue, arguing that their deployment against peaceful demonstrators was unconstitutional.

“To every soldier that you brought here, know that you are here unconstitutionally because your job description does not include being here against protesters. Before you pull that trigger or throw that canister, ask yourself: Is it constitutional or unconstitutional?” she said.

Yesufu referenced past security failures and questioned why troops were deployed to the protest instead of areas facing terrorist threats.

“There are soldiers that should be in Kwara defending the people, yet they are here. Terrorists threatened citizens yesterday. The last time they did, over 200 people were killed. They operated from sunset to sunrise,” she said.

However, operatives of the Nigeria Police Force barricaded major roads leading to the National Assembly complex ahead of an emergency plenary session scheduled for Tuesday.

The protest, which began on Monday, is being led by Yesufu alongside several civil society organisations demanding a reversal of the Senate’s decision on the Electoral Act amendment.

Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai has clarified the reasons behind his reported differences with President Bola Tinubu, stressing that the disagreement was never personal.

Speaking in an interview with Trust TV, El-Rufai said he and Tinubu never had a close personal relationship.

“I was never Tinubu’s friend. We never had a personal relationship like the one I had with General Buhari,” El-Rufai said.

He explained that his initial support for Tinubu was driven by principle rather than personal affinity.

“I was approached by certain Islamic stakeholders from the southwest to support the emergence of a southwest Muslim presidential candidate.

“That is how the discussions started. As governor of Kaduna and one of the founders of APC, I knew there was an understanding that after 8 years of Buhari, power would return to the south. It wasn’t about Tinubu; he was merely an accidental beneficiary,” he stated.

El-Rufai emphasized his commitment to party unity once Tinubu won the APC primaries.

“It is a principle of mine to fight for the candidate of my party in every election, whether I like the candidate or not.

“The fact that he emerged as the party’s candidate meant I would give everything to ensure he won,” he said.

The governor further explained that his differences with Tinubu were rooted in governance philosophy.

“We didn’t fall out; we didn’t find areas of agreement. I am in government to serve the public and deliver results not to enrich myself or appoint cronies.

“The philosophy of this government is contrary to everything I’ve been taught as a Muslim, a northerner, and a Nigerian. They came to govern the cake, to enrich themselves. We are different people parallel lines that will never meet,” El-Rufai said.

He also noted that even if he had accepted Tinubu’s publicly offered ministerial position, he would have left the government due to those fundamental differences in philosophy.

Senator representing Bauchi Central at the National Assembly, Abdul Ningi, on Monday said the Senate could make the adoption of the votes and proceedings on the electronic transmission of election results public amid ongoing controversy over the issue.

Ningi stated this on Channels Television’s Politics Today ahead of the upper chamber’s emergency plenary session scheduled for Tuesday, following ongoing debates over the e-transmission of election results after the Electoral Act amendment bill passed the third reading at the Senate.

Asked during the interview whether it was possible for the voting process at the Senate to be made public so that Nigerians could know which senator voted for or against the real-time transmission of election results, Ningi said, “I think it’s possible. It depends on the presiding officer because the law provides that.

“You can stand up and say, ‘I, Ningi, I accept e-transmission in real time.’ I sit down. It’s recorded every other senator, and that is the only way we need to move forward.”

“One thing that is very important is that the votes and proceedings have not been captured. So tomorrow, we need to look at what the votes and proceedings captured are. Is it a transfer?

“There was a motion for amendment by Manguno, and then the question was put. Who asked the question? Why was the question raised?

“Was it discussed? It is important that when you bring a motion on something that you have no idea of, one of the reasons why maybe people are not so happy is that the Senate President should have asked us as a committee, ‘Please, educate us on this issue that this Moguna has raised,” the Bauchi lawmaker added.

Ningi stated that the issue was not about one political party or the other.

“I’m here, and I’m telling you with all sense of responsibility that this is not a party thing. It has never been seen as a party thing up to the moment we went into the committee of the whole.

“If tomorrow the Senate President decides to say, ‘Is it transfer or transmission, and the gavel was sealed on transfer. They (the majority) have their way,” he said.

The federal lawmaker also expressed displeasure over what he described as the condemnation of the Senate “in its entirety” over the matter.

“I feel so sad and outraged myself when I see the condemnation across this country condemning the Senate in its entirety. And that’s why for us, we need to tell the story.

“And I can tell you 98 per cent of the senators are in agreement with the submission made by the House. I don’t know how they are trying to make it a party affair. I don’t think so.

“As I told you, APC governors have presented their submission, PDP…, and they are all saying e-transmission,” Ningi stated on the programme.