Ahead of November 16, 2024 governorship election, political parties in Ondo State have signed the peace accord.
All the 17 political parties participating in the election signed the peace accord on Friday.
This is to assure that the election will be peaceful.
The Peace Accord which was initiated by the National Peace Accord Committee, under the leadership of the former military Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar and the Convener, Bishop Mathew Kukah.
The NPC Chairman, General Abubakar, while speaking at the event, appealed to all the participating political parties and candidates in the November 16 election to avoid any act that can lead to political violence during the election.
Abubakar said the signing of the peace accord was meant to “commit the gubernatorial candidates and their party chairmen to support a peaceful and credible electoral process and promote the ideals of peace and democracy
He appealed to the party leaders and candidates to accept the outcome of the elections as long as it is adjudged to be free, fair, and credible, and to seek legitimate and peaceful means of addressing any concern that may arise thereafter.
Abubakar also called on all stakeholders to work assiduously in their capacities to ensure that peace reigns supreme during this election and that the Ondo state off-cycle election sets a precedent for other off-cycle elections to emulate.
“While I commend the INEC, for the work done so far, I call on them to continuously live up to their responsibilities in ensuring that eligible voters exercise their franchise peacefully and that the remaining electoral processes are credible free, and fair.
“1 must also extol the Nigeria Police Force and members of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) for maintaining peace and security in Ondo state.
“It has indeed remained one of the relatively peaceful states in the country. I, therefore, urge them to remain resilient in averting any threats of violence and maintaining the peace in the state as we are only a few days away from the elections.
“| want to encourage the good people of Ondo state to exercise their civic duty by coming out en masse to vote for the candidates of their choice and desist from selling their votes, as it contradicts the very essence of democracy.
“It remains the duty of Nigerian citizens to elect their leaders free from any inducements or prejudice. Political actors must also discontinue this menace of vote trading.
“As citizens you must also respect that only the INEC has the constitutional authority to announce the results, therefore, it behooves the party leaders to ensure that they play a critical role in encouraging their supporters to refrain from making statements that will incite violence within this period especially after the results have been announced.
“I urge all politicians who will sign the accord to fully commit themselves and their parties to the letter and spirit of the accord to shun violence and intimidation and remember that as politicians you must demonstrate the spirit of sportsmanship, as that is a key trait of good leadership.
“It is the sincere hope of the National Peace Committee that the Ondo state elections will be free, fair, credible, and peaceful.”
While speaking, the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, commended the committee for their tireless efforts in bringing parties and candidates together for peaceful elections in Nigeria.
