The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Saturday’s presidential poll, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has raised a red flag, urging the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof Mahmud Yakubu, to instruct the Collation Officers to upload the results from the polling units to the INEC server “immediately”.
A statement issued by Atiku’s Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, said the candidate maintained that the alert had become that in order to checkmate some governors who, the campaign alleged, “are trying to compromise the results at the local government collation level.”
“It will be a disservice to Nigerians and a negation to democracy for anyone to subvert the will of the people as freely expressed in their votes of yesterday,” Atiku said.
The PDP candidate urged Nigerians to be calm but vigilant to ensure that “anti-democratic elements who are masquerading as progressives do not steal their mandate.”
The campaign maintained that, in what is already turning out to be a nail-biting race in the 2023 Nigerian presidential elections, early results from polling units and exit polls indicatd that Atiku Abubakar was projected to become the first candidate to meet the mandatory 25% requirement of votes cast in at least 24 states.
Ibe, in the release, said that “according to the latest projections, Atiku is also set to exceed expectations in at least 10 states, where he is projected to garner over 40% of the votes cast.”
Meanwhile, the PDP presidential candidate has expressed gratitude to the Nigerian people for their support so far and pledged to continue to work hard to earn their trust and confidence.
“We are humbled and honoured by the early projections, which indicate that the Nigerian people have seen in Atiku Abubakar the kind of leader that they want to lead them into a brighter future.
“While it is still too early to predict the final outcome of the elections, Atiku Abubakar’s early success has certainly put him in a strong position as the race enters its final stages.
“From the current figures that are available, Atiku is winning in many states in the six geo-political zones. We urge our members and party agents to remain steadfast and watchful”.