The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Iyorchia Ayu, has claimed that the party won the 2019 presidential election but lost to the ruling party’s alleged manipulation.
This is as he advised the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government against compromising the integrity of the 2023 general election, stressing that the major opposition party does not want to be short-changed again.
Ayu stated while receiving the European Union Election Exploratory Mission to Nigeria led by Mrs. Mette Bakken, at the PDP National Headquarters.
“We do not want to be short-changed again. We believe we won the presidency in the 2019 general election. We were injured in 2019, and we don’t want a second injury in 2023,” he said.
According to the politician, the EU should do more to ensure a sane poll in the country.
In a statement signed by, Special Adviser on Media and Communication to the PDP National Chairman, Simon Imobo-Tswam, Ayu said, “We are prepared as a party to do the needful as far as the 2023 general election is concerned. But we are worried about the tendency and capacity of the State to manipulate the critical technologies to our disadvantage. We need to pay close attention so that we are not short-changed again.
“There are security challenges in some states, I think six or so states. We hope the government will stamp out the insecurity there early enough for elections to be held there with transparent outcomes. We will no longer accept questionable harvests of votes from inaccessible areas.
“In the past, those were areas where the ruling APC did what they love doing best: bringing votes that subverted the will of the people. Even though we are going to police our votes, it’s important that the EU sends a large number of observers ahead of the elections.”
On whether freedom of expression was being stifled, Ayu said, “To the best of my knowledge, Nigerians are very vibrant people. Even under military rule, we spoke our minds. It was through the process of speaking our minds that we formed this political party to make sure that the military handed over power.
“So, it is impossible to suppress the freedom of expression in Nigeria. The freedom space is still open. What the government in power is doing is denying us access to public spaces to hold our rallies. Even at our convention, we had to navigate and put pressure before we got a venue here in Abuja. That must stop.”
