11th March, 2015
Femi Adi/Kaduna
Worried about the on-going hate campaigns between the All Progressives Party, APC and Peoples Democratic Party , PDP, the Sultan of Sokoto and Chairman of Northern Traditional rulers Council, Alhaji Abubakar Sa’ad has cautioned politicians about overheating the polity.
Sa’ad who spoke at the opening ceremony of an emergency meeting held today at Chiefs Chamber, Lord Lugard Hall, Kaduna said there was no basis for any individual, political parties and candidates to see the forthcoming elections as a “Do-or-Die” affair.
“Election will come and go, but Nigeria will remain as one indivisible entity,” he said.
He urged traditional leaders to find means of stopping the campaigns of calumny now going on between the two main parties. “It is only when we do this that we can relatively claim to have some sanity in the system that could guarantee peaceful elections”.
According to him, people must be allowed to cast their votes without fear or intimidation, regardless of party affiliation.
Sultan Abubakar urged the politicians to stop threatening the peace of Nigeria and instead face the biggest issues confronting Nigerians. These issues he identified as the high rate of corruption and insecurity.
On reasons for the meeting , he said the emirs and other traditional rulers deemed it necessary to call for the meeting in order to discuss ways of ensuring peaceful , free and fair elections.
The Sultan who also noted that a similar meeting was held ahead of the 2011 general elections, insisted that the traditional rulers must resolve to support a process for a peaceful and violence free election.
He however pointed out that peace and a violent free election can be achieved if the politicians avoid issues of religion, tribe and other sentiments that have currently characterised the campaigns.
He equally said the tradional rulers as the people’s leaders must play a role to ensure that the election must be peaceful before, during and after elections.
“We have much more at stake as traditional leaders to ensure unity , peace and stability of Nigeria as a country,” he stated.