Inaugurating Buhari on June 12 cannot confer legitimacy on rigged presidential election - PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday took a swipe on President Muhammadu Buhari the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) for moving major events of the President’s inauguration from May 29 to June 12.

The PDP said the President and his party should not think that the move can confer any form of legitimacy on the outcome of the ‘rigged’ 2019 presidential election.

A statement by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, also said that inviting world leaders to the inauguration cannot confer international recognition on a “stolen mandate”

“It is clear that the Buhari Presidency and the APC, being tormented by the guilt of violating our electoral processes, can no longer boldly approach the oath book on May 29, due to the burden of illegitimacy and now seeks refuge in the sanctity of June 12, our Democracy Day.


“The Buhari Presidency and the APC from our recent history, have demonstrated that they are totally averse to democracy. They should therefore steer clear of our Democracy Day, having violated all our democratic ethos in manipulating the presidential election and upturning the mandate of the people; the same injustice which Chief MKO Abiola, the symbol of June 12, fought and died for”, the statement said.

Stating that Chief Abiola stood and died for democracy, the PDP said attempt to schedule any event related to the outcome of the 2019 presidential election on June 12 would be an open desecration of the sanctity of the Democracy Day and a direct assault to the sensibilities of Nigerians.

It described the government’s move as absurd and desperation to overshadow the import of the nation’s Democracy Day and stifle the quest by Nigerians to vent their anger against alleged democratic violations by the administration in the last four years.

The opposition party cautioned the government against what it described as alleged plot to seize Democracy Day, saying such cannot erase the litany of violations, including human rights abuses, assault on democratic institutions, particularly the Legislature and the Judiciary; clamp down on opposition figures, clipping of the media, extra-judicial killings, arbitrary arrests and illegal detention of citizens, and the rigging of the 2019 presidential election.

“The PDP wants the Buhari Presidency and the APC to understand that what is paramount to majority of Nigerians now is the retrieval of the stolen mandate, which they freely gave to Atiku Abubakar, at the tribunal so that our nation can enjoy the values of freedom, justice, fairness and equity embedded in our constitutional democracy”, the statement added.