The six groups in the North holding public interaction with presidential candidates said on Tuesday that they have no plan to endorse any presidential candidate ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The groups, under the aegis of Arewa Joint Committee, have interacted with five presidential candidates on their agenda for the North and Nigeria as a whole.
The presidential candidates are Bola Tinubu of APC, Peter Obi of Labour Party, Atiku Abubakar of the PDP, Kola Abiola of PRP and Adewole Adebayo of SDP.
Murtala Aliyu, Chairman, Steering Committee of the group, said at a press conference in Kaduna that their aim was to give voters in the North the opportunity to appraise each candidate based on their agenda.
“We want to make sure that whoever will come, will stabilize the country and address the peculiar interests of the North.
“We are not validating anybody, but we are going to tell the world what everyone of them said about what.
“Our duty is to make the public appreciate what each of the candidates has in stock for the North and the country at large,” he said.
According to him, it is not the duty of the group to accept or validate any candidate.
“It is for the public, the presentation was made publicly so that Nigerians may measure and evaluate the candidates.
“Our goal is to afford citizens an opportunity to match candidates against their commitments to matters that are central to the interests of the North,” Aliyu said.
He said five of the six candidates earmarked to attend the session participated, and appreciated them for their positive response.
According to him, the candidates’ acceptance to submit themselves to public scrutiny is an indication of their respect to public opinion and the Nigerian voters.
“These interactions, the first of their type in the history of our country, have been a tremendous success.
“First, they demonstrated the strong bonds of unity of the people of the North, represented by the collaborating groups.
“Second, they showed a commendable level of respect for the democratic process by the candidates who submitted to the process.”
He said the interactive sessions afforded Nigerians a rare opportunity to see and hear the candidates speak about their plans and vision.
“They helped to focus attention on the peculiar and shared problems and challenges of the North and scrutinize the levels of understanding and sympathy for them among the candidates,” the chairman added.
He said the group had raised the bar in the search for leadership that respects accountability and competence in the country.
“Until the elections in February 2023, the North will be challenged to raise its vigilance over all electoral activities.
“It is vital that we prioritize evidence of competence, integrity, quality of preparation and commitment to address the challenges of the North among candidates,” he added.
According to him, the groups will continue to invite attention of government to the security of the electoral process.
He said this would be more particularly to the vulnerability of many parts of the region to organized crime which may pose serious threat to people’s rights to elect the next set of leaders in 2023.
“The need to show restraint and discipline as politicians canvass for our elections has never been more pressing.
“The entire nation must be open to all contestants and free from violence.
“The exploitation of ethnic and religious fault lines is extremely dangerous, and the nation is already showing signs of stress owing to this exploitation” he sad.
NAN
