The African Democratic Congress (ADC) Presidential Campaign Council has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to resist any pressure to change the January 16 presidential election date, insisting that the decision must not be taken behind closed doors.
The council raised the concern over an alleged plan to summon INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, to the Presidential Villa and pressure him to alter the election timetable, with only 80 days remaining before the poll.
In a statement issued by its Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the council called on President Bola Tinubu to abandon any move to postpone the election.
It also urged Amupitan to reject any instruction to change the date and publicly disclose any attempt to influence the commission.
“The election date belongs to Nigerians. It must not be rewritten behind closed doors at the Villa,” the council said.
The ADC said Nigerians should be allowed to decide the fate of the Tinubu administration through the ballot box after years of economic hardship, rising prices and declining purchasing power.
It argued that postponing the election would deny citizens the opportunity to hold the government accountable through the democratic process.
“A government that has made life this difficult for Nigerians must not be allowed to postpone its day of judgment,” the council said.
The council also addressed concerns over Ebola, acknowledging the seriousness of the public health threat but insisting that the disease should not be used as a reason to delay the election without sufficient evidence.
It called on health professionals to focus on containing the disease while urging INEC to take appropriate measures to protect voters and election workers.
The ADC cited the position of the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, who it said had indicated that there was no current reason to postpone the election.
The council warned against using the health emergency as a political justification for changing the timetable or a reason to avoid facing voters at the polls.
The ADC also called on domestic election observers and international monitors to closely watch developments surrounding the election timetable.
It demanded that any proposal to change the date be made public, supported by published health evidence and subjected to public scrutiny.