The Sowore Presidential Campaign Organisation has called for a thorough investigation into the legal and moral fitness of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu to hold public office now.
The campaign organisation noted with concern the indifference so far displayed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Nigeria’s security agencies over the disturbing allegations of drug dealing, forgery, and perjury levelled against Tinubu.
A statement issued by the African Action Congress Presidential Campaign Spokesperson, Onyinye-Gandhi Chukwunyere, on Sunday is titled “Investigate Tinubu’s Legal and Moral Fitness for Public Office Now”. He described the reluctance of the agencies to seriously consider all the allegations and take necessary steps to interrogate their veracity and, by implication, Mr. Tinubu’s legal and moral fitness for public office as dangerous.
Chukwunyere warned that such a nonchalant attitude on the part of law enforcement agencies could potentially see the country fall into the hands of agents of organised cartels disguising themselves as politicians.
“Nigerians would recall that our presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore was the first investigative journalist to uncover the dirty dealings of Mr. Tinubu in Chicago in the early years of the latter’s reign as the governor of Lagos State. In fact, citizen Sowore’s meticulous investigation and detailed reporting at the time led to the infamous Tinubu-Chicago certificate scandal which almost resulted in Mr. Tinubu’s removal from office.
“Our campaign organization is fully aware of the numerous petitions received by INEC and security agencies on this matter and we join millions of concerned Nigerians to urge INEC and the relevant security agencies, especially the Nigerian Police, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) to exercise their statutory mandate to investigate and ascertain the credibility or otherwise of these dangerous allegations,” he said.
The campaign spokesman stated that the journey to a free and fair election starts with presenting fair choices to the Nigerian electorate; arguing that shielding a presidential candidate with weighty drug allegations is the beginning of rigging.
The statement further read, “We recognize the fact that Mr. Tinubu, like many others in the corrupt Nigerian political class, has become so powerful as to inspire fear and hesitation within our weak public institutions. However, we cannot build a just, fair, and equitable society if certain elements are deemed beyond the latitude of state institutions to enforce accountability.
“The African Action Congress and the Sowore Campaign Organisation strongly believe that the Nigerian people have suffered enormously at the hands of integrity-challenged individuals who have managed to manipulate their way to political power by evading proper public and institutional scrutiny.
“In the last two decades, these characters have gone on to capture the Nigerian state and consequently impose their rotten moral rubric on the rest of society. We cannot allow that to continue. The Nigerian people deserve to be led by only the finest amongst us, and we are determined to make sure that happens in 2023 and beyond.
“Therefore, we call on INEC and the relevant security agencies to immediately shed the toga of timidity and deliberate nonchalance and properly review Mr. Tinubu’s legal and moral fitness to run for the country’s presidency, or any other public office for that matter in light of the weighty allegations against him.
“We warn that failure to do so would render these agencies complicit should the security and welfare of the Nigerian people become thereby compromised.”
