Goodluck Jonathan
said yesterday that the rescheduled elections in Bauchi and Kaduna
States will hold on Thursday as planned, but if the elections were not
held, the federal government may be forced to impose a state of
emergency in the two states.
Mr Jonathan said
this while talking to journalists after voting in his hometown, Otuoke,
Bayelsa State, adding that there was no reason why the elections could
not go on as scheduled because more security personnel would be
deployed to the two states.
The president
explained that even though Nigerians generally have a misconception
about the declaration of a state of emergency, which is supposed to be
used only as a last resort, it may not necessarily lead to the ouster
of the state governors.
“State of
emergency, sometimes people don’t even understand. I got to know that
when you impose a state of emergency, by law, the governor is not
supposed to leave. That is what my attorney general of the federation
told me. We will find out.”
He added, “If you
declare a state of emergency in any state, invariably, what you are
saying is that there is nothing like development in that state. You
appoint a military administrator and use the money to make sure there
is security and this is not the best.
“There may be two
reasons why people are talking about state of emergency, either because
the situation is still so bad or alternatively if by 29th of this month
we are unable to conduct election in any state, then by law you can’t
conduct any election in any state again until after inauguration
because we need 30 days.
“In that case we
have no choice than to declare a state of emergency. But as a president
you cannot just rush to declare state of emergency. It should be the
last when everything fails because this is the state of emergency that
is probably for six months or even if it is three months, these are
three months of stagnation. We cannot just rush that. That is why we
deferred the election for Kaduna, Bauchi ‘til Thursday.”
Mr Jonathan added that the government was keenly studying the situation in both states before taking a decision.
Kudos to youth corps
The president
commended the National Youth Service Corps members for their conduct as
ad hoc staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission, assuring
them that government was aware of their plight and was doing everything
possible to protect their lives.
He also thanked
Nigerians for their commitment to the sustenance of democracy in the
country and most especially for the enthusiasm they have shown in the
elections. He added that from the information available to him,
Tuesday’s elections had been well-conducted in most parts of the
country and expressed the hope that, though the elections in the
country have been praised for their credibility, the 2015 election
would be even better, asserting that everyone had a role to play.
“I will ensure that we conduct free and fair election. What I
promise now is that the 2015 will be better elections because we will
improve,” said Mr Jonathan.
