18th March, 2015
The Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, NPAN, has insisted that the general elections must hold as rescheduled by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Their decision followed the association’s extra-ordinary meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, where all the members agreed that on no account should the elections be shifted again as is being speculated in some quarters.
A statement issued after the meeting and signed by Mr. Nduka Obaigbena, president of NPAN, read: “the general election must hold on March 28th and April 11th as scheduled by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
“The election must produce an outcome and Nigerians must rally round whoever emerges the winner.
“The election is for and by the Nigeran people and it must be free, fair and held in such a way that it will deepen the nation’s democracy such that at the end of the electoral process, Nigeria must be the winner.”
The association therefore asked politicians to ensure total compliance with the rules guiding the conduct of the election, noting that, “we call on the people of Nigeria, especially political leaders across the nation, to eschew every form of violence.
“The prevalent do-or-die attitude is unnecessary, unhelpful and unhealthy for our system of democracy. We must all say no to violence before, during and after the election.”