Afrigather *warns VP Kashim Shettima to avoid Non secular politics:
In a dramatic flip of occasions following the current Nasarawa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal’s verdict, the Human Rights Writers Affiliation of Nigeria (HURIWA) has strongly criticized makes an attempt to infuse spiritual dimensions into the result…..CONTINUE READING HERE
HURIWA, in an announcement on Friday, recalled that the tribunal had nullified the election of incumbent Governor Abdullahi Sule from the All Progressives Congress (APC) and declared David Ombugadu of the Individuals’s Democratic Social gathering (PDP) because the winner of the March 18, 2023, governorship election within the state.
“Delivering the judgment just about, the Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Ezekiel Ajayi, declared Ombugadu because the lawfully elected governor of Nasarawa State. The twist on this political saga appears to come up from the truth that Ombugadu is the only Christian among the many candidates who vied for the place, whereas the others are Muslims.
The assertion signed by the Nationwide Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, nonetheless, emphasised that the election end result was a mirrored image of the collective will of Nasarawa State’s various inhabitants, which incorporates traditionalists, Christians, and Muslims, who exercised their democratic proper to vote with out regard to non secular affiliations.
Whereas expressing deep concern over allegations that Governor Abdullahi Sule’s camp is selling a false narrative that portrays the tribunal’s verdict as an try by Christians to take management of the governorship seat, which has been held by Muslims for the previous 21 years in Nasarawa State, HURIWA strongly refuted this depiction, labeling it inaccurate and a harmful try to sow spiritual discord the place none exists.
Moreover, HURIWA frowned at disturbing experiences suggesting efforts by Abdullahi Sule’s camp to affect the Attraction Court docket and subsequently the Supreme Court docket within the occasion the case progresses to that stage. Additionally, HURIWA has it from sources that the Nation’s Vice President Kashim Shettima is allegedly concerned within the try to weave Islamic sentiments into the Nasarawa State governorship litigation by allegedly trying to mobilise Islamic leaders and high judicial officers in Abuja to scuttle the judgment of the Nasarawa governorship election petition tribunal which returned the decision that certainly the PDP gained simply because the Rights group puzzled why the VP who’s from Borno state is allegedly being linked to such a sinister plot to divide the nice folks of Nasarawa State which occurs to be one of the crucial religiously various subnational entity with Muslims, Christians, conventional African Faith cohabiting as one and the identical households. We urge the VP, the governor, the Emir of Lafia and His Excellency the Sultan of Sokoto who’s effectively regarded for his objectivity, to not dabble into partisan politics or drag their excessive places of work into spiritual and political bigotry.
“These purported makes an attempt contain reaching out to influential spiritual figures, together with the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’advert Abubakar III, and leveraging the affect of the Emir of Lafia, Sidi Bage, a former Supreme Court docket decide.
“Nasarawa State, identified for its spiritual range, has a historical past of tolerance and unity amongst its folks, no matter spiritual backgrounds. The introduction of non secular dimensions right into a political matter in such a harmonious society is deeply troubling and will have extreme repercussions”.
Due to this fact, HURIWA warned all stakeholders, together with spiritual leaders and conventional rulers, to chorus from interfering within the judicial course of. The affiliation urged them to uphold the rule of legislation and allow the courts to make determinations based mostly on the proof offered earlier than them: “In a democratic society, the legislation ought to all the time take priority over sentiments and non secular biases.
“The significance of Nasarawa State receiving a clear, equitable, and unbiased decision to this election dispute, devoid of divisive components, can’t be overemphasized. HURIWA stands unwavering in its dedication to safeguarding the rights of all Nigerians and making certain that justice prevails with out bias”…..CONTINUE READING HERE
Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko
Nationwide Coordinator
Human Rights Writers Affiliation of Nigeria (HURIWA).
