Friday, 29th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search

Ambode, Agbaje sign peace pact, Kano PDP, APC, 25 others too

By Seye Olumide, Victoria Ojugbana and Murtala Muhammed Kano
09 February 2015   |   8:47 pm
Lagos women group endorses candidate UNITED States Consulate General in Lagos Monday supervised the signing of a peace agreement between the two leading Lagos governorship candidates, Akinwunmi Ambode of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Jimi Agbaje of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).   Ambode and Agbaje both expressed commitment to the promotion of peaceful…

Agbaje-and-Ambode

Lagos women group endorses candidate

UNITED States Consulate General in Lagos Monday supervised the signing of a peace agreement between the two leading Lagos governorship candidates, Akinwunmi Ambode of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Jimi Agbaje of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

  Ambode and Agbaje both expressed commitment to the promotion of peaceful participation before, during, and after the elections and also agreed to accept the outcome of the polls, whatever it may be and to seek redress for any perceived injustice through legal and legitimate means.

   U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, James Entwistle, explained that the U.S. is committed to peaceful elections in the country, challenging the candidates and their parties to respect the non-violence pledge, which they both signed.

   “The greatest supporter of the United States in this electioneering process is the Nigerian people and we are committed to seeing peaceful elections take place in Nigeria,” Entwistle said.

  Ambode, who reiterated his commitment to the peace building process in support of non-violence, said, “I want to assure Lagosians that we (APC) are committed to non-violence and this is what we have been preaching during our campaigns.”

  “Notwithstanding whether the date of the election has been shifted, we know that the destiny of Nigerians cannot be shifted. I want to appeal to all Lagosians to remain calm in the midst of all these,” Ambode said.

  Agbaje, while emphasising the importance of violence-free polls, said: “It is important to note that Lagos thrives on good governance and that is the only way we can move forward.”

In a related development, the Sisters Forum and a coalition of women from the different ethnic groups in Lagos have endorsed the APC gubernatorial candidate, Mr. Ambode.

    The women, who spoke through their Executive Director, Mrs. Chinyere Anokwuru at a rally for the endorsement of the candidacy of Ambode and his running mate, Dr. (Mrs.) Oluranti Adebule, said their decision to endorse Ambode was based on their assessment of his competence and experience.

   According to her, “The emergence of Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode as the APC gubernatorial candidate in Lagos State ended our worries about who could match Governor Fashola’s achievements. A look into his manifesto revealed that he had sufficient relief-oriented programmes for women. The welfare and economic empowerment of women is uppermost in his heart amongst many others.”

   She added, “Mr. Ambode’s credentials are excellent. His pedigree is spotless. He is the new face of leadership, transparency and competence. His intellectual and professional depth has put him on a pedestal that is higher than those of the other candidates.”

In Kano State, 27 political parties, which include the PDP and APC, have signed a peace accord.

    Committing themselves to respect the sanctity and dignity of fellow citizens, the parties signed the two-page written document at the Bompai Kano Police headquarters before the Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone One, Alhaji Muhammad Tambari Yabo and immediate past Commissioner of Police in Kano, newly-promoted AIG Adenrele Shinaba.

      Speaking on the motive for the peace accord, AIG Adenrele Shinaba said that the initiative was undertaken to prevail on political gladiators across party lines to maintain law and order as no sacred cow would be spared for breaching law and order, which can hinder a peaceful conduct of the elections.

    He maintained that Police was committed and ready to ensure security of lives and property as party of its constitutional responsibility, hence the need to cautioned key players in the polity.

    “The Police is committed to ensuring that Kano people can go to bed with their two eyes closed and on our part we would ensure equal play ground and I can assure you the Police in Kano will not be partisan. Experiences during political campaign in the state had clearly showed and demonstrated violent tendencies. We are not unmindful of these.

0 Comments