Mathew Hassan- Kukah, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto State and one of the National Peace Committee’ s conveners, has stated that not signing the peace deal by any candidate in an election sends the wrong signal, even though it is not illegal. ..Read Full Article
His statement comes in the aftermath of the Peoples Democratic Party’ s (PDP) rejection to sign a peace deal to avoid bloodshed in the Edo State gubernatorial election slated for September 21.
The PDP boycotted the pre- election ritual last week due to charges against the police. The APC, PDP, and Labour Party are among the 17 political parties running candidates in the elections.
Speaking at a security town hall hosted by a tv channel ahead of the election, Kukah stated that while the peace committee, led by former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar, cannot force any candidate to sign the peace treaty, doing so sends the incorrect signal to the political system.
He stated, ” What we, the National Peace Committee, do is not in the Electoral Act, it is not legal; it is moral. You cannot force individuals to fall in love or to love their neighbor; but, you may encourage them to do so.
” In the 2019 election, the PDP’ s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, did not sign the Peace Accord. And of course, the opposition went to town, which is what it ought to be, and the next day, he (Atiku) turned up to sign.
” What is also very interesting is that the current president (Tinubu), when he was a presidential candidate, did not sign. It wasn’ t our fault that the political opposition didn’ t take advantage of it. ”……Read Full Article
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