The Labour Party has released a statement following the verdict of the Supreme Court upholding the election of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the President of Nigeria. In a terse statement signed by its National Chairman, Julius Abure, the party expressed its disappointment over the Supreme Court ruling and advised Labour Party members and obidients to get prepared for the challenges ahead.
The statement reads, “It is indeed another sad day for democracy in Nigeria. The leadership of the Labour Party watched as the sacred fabric of justice and good conscience was shredded today at the Supreme Court as it delivered its verdict in the case between our party’s presidential candidate and the APC presidential candidate. We are indeed very shocked and surprised that even the apex court will toe the line of an earlier judgment in spite of all the flaws associated with the judgment delivered by the Presidential Election Appeal Tribunal.”
“Having conclusively exercised our fundamental rights as gifted to us by the laws of the land, we have no choice but to move on. Despite the fact that we are disappointed and appalled by the outcome of the exercise, we have decided to press on and remain hopeful about the country’s future.
“We weep for our institutions that cannot rise to the occasion and courageously defend democracy and the voices of our people. However, there are great lessons to be learned. What transpired in Nigeria since the February 25 presidential election is a clear testament that our institutions are not working and that we may be sliding towards dictatorship. It is very clear that the executive has hijacked both the judiciary and the legislature. This is so unfortunate for our democracy, and it is even more so for the people of Nigeria.
“All that our forebears taught us has been destroyed within a short space of time because of the unbridled ambition of a few. The founding fathers fought with their lives to achieve independence for the country. People lost their lives in the struggle to keep our democracy, and all these years, people have been struggling to achieve electoral and constitutional reforms. Regrettably, all of these efforts and struggles have been destroyed today.
“It is also pertinent to put on record that we have it on very good authority that the government may have marked some of the Labour Party’s key leaders, myself especially, and our leader and presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, in particular, for vilification in order to suppress the party, suffocate our team, and undermine our goal of a new Nigeria. The planned persecution, intimidation, suppression, and harassment of our leaders using security agencies and all other government institutions will definitely be defended.”
“We are therefore calling on all our members and the Obedient family to be vigilant and brace up for the challenges ahead. The struggle for a new Nigeria will certainly be tortuous and hard.
“We are also calling on the international community to rise to the occasion to defend democracy in Nigeria. Your voices were loud and clear in their condemnation of the outcome of the presidential election. As we approach the next stage of our democratic journey, we call on you to stand by the millions of Nigerians who are already pushed beyond their limits into unnecessary hardship and penury.
“Finally, we urge Nigerians not to lose hope in our country. Though we are paying a huge price to achieve the Nigeria of our desire, we are hopeful that we will get to our destination someday, because where there is a will, certainly there will be a way. A new Nigeria is still possible,” the Labour Party concluded affirmatively.