October 28, (THEWILL) The Executive Director, CISLAC, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani,has urged Nigerians to put aside their grievances and accept the verdict of the Supreme Court which affirmed the election of President Bola Tinubu, as the completion of the 2023 presidential election cycle.
Rafsanjani, who is also the Chairman, Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), made the call in a statement circulated to newsmen on Saturday
“The 2023 general election came to its full cycle with the verdict of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on 26th October 2023.
“Although a significant number of Nigerians hold reservations against the verdict on the appeals of candidates of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi, it must be noted that Nigeria operates under a democracy and as such, Nigerians across the divides must put aside their grievances and accept the verdict as the completion of the 2023 presidential election cycle,” Rafsanjani said.
He also said that with the verdict,Nigerians “must now take over the mandate of holding this administration to account by demanding accountability at all levels.
“It is also very important for Nigerians to insist on genuine reforms in the electoral system as well as the judiciary. It must be noted that reforms that comprehensively seek to regulate the actions of political actors are critical in this time.
“The 2023 election exposed how much the political class can subvert electoral laws to their selfish ends.
“Citizens must now insist on reforms that check unruly behaviours of the politicians ahead of subsequent elections in the country,” he said further.
The CISLAC executive director then urged President Bola Tinubu to use the Supreme Court victory to address the increasing high cost of living in Nigeria.
“President Tinubu must as a matter of urgency put in place the right machinery to use the Supreme Court victory to address the increasing high cost of living in Nigeria largely occasioned by policies introduced since inception of his administration,”he added.
Abdullahi Yusuf is a seasoned journalist, communicator and was previously the Deputy Editor-In-Chief and Zonal Manager, News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Jos, where he retired on December 15, 2021
