The Nigeria Governors’ Forum, comprised of thirty-six state governors, has urged the Department of State Services (DSS) to quickly apprehend and punish those it has recognised as plotting to establish a temporary government, rather than making comments and inflaming the politics.
The governors who denounced any illegal means of regime change, on the other hand, promised to fight such a move, as well as to continue to defend Nigeria’s democracy as chosen leaders.
In a communiqué issued yesterday at the conclusion of the 4th gathering of the governors by NGF Chairman and Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, they cautioned the DSS against releasing statements without arrest as this equates to boiling the politics.
While admitting that “the last election was not perfect,” the leaders stated, “We will use the learning points to strengthen our democracy and electoral processes.” The Forum also praised its members who were re-elected for a second term.
“The Forum deliberated extensively on the alleged plot by some unscrupulous elements to install an interim government, as contained in the recent statement issued by the Department for State Services (DSS),” according to the governors’ communiqué. Governors condemned any unconstitutional means of regime change and pledged to continue to defend Nigeria’s democracy as elected leaders.
“Moreover, the Forum believes that issuing statements without arrests is akin to heating up the polity and causing unwarranted tension in the country.” It urged the DSS to do its work by capturing and trying all those engaged in the plan as soon as possible. It will be remembered that the DSS verified reports on Wednesday that a segment of the political elite was preparing a temporary administration.
Dr Peter Afunanya, a spokesperson for the DSS, said in a statement that the agency had named some important actors in the plan for a temporary administration in Nigeria but did not identify the masterminds.
The agency stated that the interim government’s planners had already met several times, during which they weighed various options for carrying out their plan, such as sponsoring endless mass protests across Nigerian cities, obtaining a warrant to declare a state of emergency, or obtaining a court injunction to prevent the inauguration of the executive and legislature at the federal and state levels.
Meanwhile, the Inter-Party Advisory Council, IPAC, asked the Department of State Services on Friday to identify and punish those accused of planning to destabilise the country and establish a temporary administration.
National Chairman of IPAC, Engr. Yabagi Sani made the call while addressing the media following the Council’s extraordinary General Assembly gathering at its national headquarters in Abuja.
According to him, the secret police must go beyond making the accusation by identifying and arraigning the alleged masterminds in a capable court of law in order to serve as a warning to others who may wish to follow in their footsteps.
“Conscious of the need for reconciliation, healing, political stability, national unity, peace, cohesion, and the desire to preserve our hard-earned democracy after the contentious 2023 general election, the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) strongly condemns the call and plot to install an interim government in Nigeria,” he said.
“IPAC rejects any attempt by reactionary and retrogressive forces to scuttle, subvert, and truncate the nation’s emerging democracy; it is an attempt to overheat the polity, cause confusion, political upheavals, impasses, and quagmires, as was the case in the infamous annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election, which necessitated the hasty establishment of an interim government by General Ibrahim Babangida
“The Council takes note of the Department of State Service’s (DSS) announcement that it has uncovered a plot by some individuals to violently disrupt the nation’s peace and install an interim government.”
“The Council demands that the country’s intelligence service identify the plotters, arrest and prosecute them in accordance with the law of the land as a deterrent to others who would resort to self-help to achieve their selfish political ambitions.”
Sani also encouraged all unhappy political parties, contestants, and followers to avoid all forms of violence and seek legal remedies for alleged violations and anomalies in the conduct of the 2023 general election.
“The Council also urged the judiciary, as the temple of justice and the last hope of all aggrieved persons, to dispense justice without fear or favour.”
“All eyes are on the judiciary to justify the people’s trust in it by upholding the rule of law,” he said, adding that “that is the only way to assuage the anger in the land and maintain the sanctity of the ballot box.”
IPAC praised Prof. Nnenna Nwannaya-Oti, the INEC’s returning officer in the recently completed gubernatorial and house of assembly elections in Abia State on March 18, 2023, for “her exemplary conduct and very impressive performance in the exercise.”
“Council’s commendation is based on her ability to rise above the pressure and carry out her statutory mandate without fear or favour,” he said. “We hope that others can emulate this virtue of integrity, which is lacking among some public officers placed in positions of trust.”
