President Muhammadu Buhari has assured Nigerians and the international community of free, fair, and credible elections when citizens go to the polls to elect his successor in 2023.
Buhari gave this assurance yesterday at a Virtual Summit for Democracy organised by President Joe Biden of the United States, stressing that necessary mechanisms would be strengthened to ensure Nigeria witnesses another peaceful transfer of power.
Speaking in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, he said; ‘As we countdown to our next general elections in 2023, we remain committed to putting in place and strengthening all necessary mechanisms to ensure that Nigeria will not only record another peaceful transfer of power to an elected democratic government but will also ensure that the elections are conducted in a free, fair and transparent manner’.
Read Also: 2023 Election: APC Will Win, Buhari Is Doing Well – Uzodinma
‘Your Excellencies, Nigeria will continue to actively support the democratisation processes in our region West Africa and the African continent at large. But regrettably, our democratic gains of the past decades are under threats of unconstitutional takeover of power.
‘This unwholesome trend, sometimes in reaction to unilateral amendments of constitutions by some leaders, must not be tolerated by the international community. Nigeria fully supports the efforts by ECOWAS to address this growing challenge and appreciates the support of both the African Union and the United Nations.’
President Buhari went further to lament that Nigeria has continued to face security challenges that pose a threat to democracy, and called on global partners to support the government’s efforts in tackling insurgency and terrorism.
The country, he said, has had over two decades of uninterrupted democratic governance and has unequivocally remained committed to upholding the core values and principles of democracy.
‘Since assuming office in 2015, we have been able to introduce mechanisms to ensure free, fair, and credible elections,’ he told the summit. ‘We have strengthened our key anti-corruption agencies in collaboration with international partners and have undertaken several anti-corruption measures and initiatives.’
The President thanked his American counterpart, as well as the government and people of the United States for hosting the summit.
He pointed out that democracy has remained the most popular and universally recognised way of governance, he believes it is the only system of governance that guarantees freedom of speech, rule of law, respect for human rights, and inclusiveness in governance.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK