Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has urged Nigerians to protect their votes in the February 16 and March 2 general elections.
This comes as he decried the participation of foreigners at the APC Presidential Rally in Kano State.
Atiku who spoke on Saturday at the PDP Presidential Campaign Rallies in Abia and Edo States, charged the people of the two states to vote and remain at their polling booth until the votes are counted and recorded.
“On the 16th of this month, when you vote, it is about your future. Stay there. Let them count there. Let them enter the results on the form and let them paste it before you go. If you don’t do it, they will cheat you, they will rig the election.
“You see how they are bringing people from Niger and Chad. They will come in your own country and turn you into slaves. Don’t agree. After that, you can now go home. Make sure they don’t rig you because they are rigging your future. They have already destroyed this country.
“This is the first time we are having 21 million people out of jobs. Never in this country. And you are the people. Most of you are out of jobs. It is APC that has caused this problem for you. So, drive them out, vote them out, send them home,” he said.
The former Vice President promised to return the country to the days of prosperity, as witnessed in the days of PDP.
“I want you to vote for PDP so that you can have jobs, so that you can have businesses, so that you can have enterprises. Whatever you want to do, we want you to succeed. We are not like APC. You know what PDP has done for this country. When we came in, the price of crude oil was $11, yet we saved money to pay all our foreign debts. And we saw prosperity, we saw GSM revolution technology. Everything, we brought them to this country. We want to continue on the path of that prosperity. So, I appeal to you to vote PDP,” he added.
Highlights of the Edo rally was the defection of APC chieftains to PDP, including business mogul, Osamede Adun, popularly called Bob Izua.
In Abia State, Atiku was earlier given a traditional title of ‘Ahaeji eje mba’ by the state traditional rulers council.
On his part, PDP National Chairman, Uche Secondus charged Nigerians especially those living in boarder states of the North not to sell their Permanent Voters Card (PVC) to foreigners.
He accused the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) of importing foreigners from Niger and Chad Republics to buy up Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) from Nigerians with a view to manipulating the results.
Secondus called on the Ministry of Interior to consider closing the nation’s boarders in those areas until the elections are over.
He warned the Independent National Electoral Comission (INEC) to do everything to avert the thwarting of the will of Nigerian people on the election as that would breed violence.
He said: “When we raise alarm about their rigging plot they get uncomfortable because they want us to keep quiet and let them manipulate the election but such will lead to violence and we want peace”.
Other speakers at the rally in Abia and Edo states include the Vice Presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and the former Senate President Adolphus Wabara as well as the National Organizing Secretary of the party an indigene of Abia state. Col (rtd) Austine Akubundu.
OWEDE AGBAJILEKE, Abuja
