President Muhammadu Buhari has previewed the forthcoming general elections slated for 2023 in Nigeria with a declaration that his administration will conduct a credible poll that contestants in the elections will be pleased with.
The President disclosed this on Friday in Washington DC, the United States capital, at an interactive session titled, “A conversation with President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria’.
The interactive session was co-hosted by the United State Institute of Peace (USIP), International Republican Institute, National Endowment for Democracy and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems.
Buhari, according to a release issued on Saturday by his spokesperson, Garba Shehu, however reiterated his unwavering determination to ensure the conduct of free, fair and transparent national elections in 2023.
According to him: ‘‘Since 2015, the conduct of our elections continues to steadily improve. From the 2019 general elections, the by-elections and the off-season elections in Edo, Ekiti, Anambra and Osun States were conducted in largely improved contexts to the satisfaction of contestants and voters.
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‘‘That is what we hope for in 2023. Through the observatory roles of the International Community, the credibility of the elections can be further enhanced to make the acceptability of the outcome to the contestants and political parties a non-issue.’’
On INEC’s readiness to conduct the elections, the President said the commission is ready “because I made sure they were given all the resources they asked because I don’t want any excuses that they were denied funds by the government.”
However, in another statement, governors on the platform of the All Progressives Congress commended Buhari’s commitment to restore confidence in the electoral process of the country as they felicitated with him on the occasion of his 80th birthday.
“We are grateful for your leadership, vision and commitment to move our dear nation forward. Your doggedness and unwavering determination to defend and secure Nigeria as a prosperous and democratic country has immeasurably stabilised and restore confidence in our electoral process and party politics.” The Progressives governors forum disclosed.
