Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the last general election, Friday, broke his silence since losing his petition at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal, explaining why he would go the whole hog to reclaim his ‘mandate’.
Specifically, he said he was going to the Supreme Court contest the tribunal judgment which dismissed his petition in its entirety” as a means of making sure that the “votes of Nigerians count and are counted.”
And as he embarked on the journey, he canvassed the support of all Nigerians to get justice.
“Nothing good comes easy,” Atiku declared in a statement personally signed by him, “and hard as the task to rid Nigeria from the forces of fascism, and be an instrument for the full restoration of the rule of law and democracy in Nigeria is, your support makes the struggle worthwhile.”
“If I do not play my part in making it possible for other orphaned children, indigent youths and the less privileged, to replicate and even surpass my path to significance, I would have failed my Maker. If I do not ensure that the ladder I climbed remains accessible to those at the bottom, middle and top tiers of society, I would not have fulfilled my purpose,” he continued.
“And only by ensuring that democracy is not just done, but seen to be done, can Nigeria and Nigerians have a sense that this our dear land is indeed a land where Unity, Faith, Peace and Progress reside.
“It is for this, and other patriotic reasons, that I am pursuing this judicial route: To ensure that the votes of Nigerians count and are counted.”
The former Vice President waxed emotional as he recalled his humble beginning, saying that he owed “so much to this great land of Nigeria that took me from the streets of Jada, where I sold firewood, to the heights I have attained, by God’s benevolence, in the civil service, in corporate Nigeria, and in public service.”
“Yes, those who do not want this as Nigeria’s reality, will use every trick in the book to undermine, discourage, misinform and mislead, but with God’s help and the support of Nigerians, we will ensure that Nigeria makes a course correction away from tyranny and towards democracy.
“We must return to being Africa’s bastion of democracy, where the rights to Freedom of Speech and Freedom after the Speech, are guaranteed. We must stand together to pursue this just cause all the way, so that our judiciary are not afraid to do their jobs and have to be wary of blackmail, intimidation, and victimisation.”
Atiku was not done. He canvassed the support of Nigerians to ensure justice is served in the appeal: “I urge all Nigerians to continue their support for this recourse to constitutional order via the courts. Even if there is little or nothing you can do to ensure that justice is done in Nigeria, just believe that it will happen. Let us never underestimate the effect of our belief in Nigeria.
“Once again I thank you all for your support. I also thank the governors elected on the platform of my party, the Peoples Democratic Party, as well as the National Executive Committee, for their unanimous and unambiguous support for the judicial phase of this struggle, especially after it was announced that we would go on to appeal.”