Igbo Leaders of Thought met in Enugu and warned that any shift in the date of the forthcoming elections will be tragic and catastrophic insisting that whatever the position the elections must go on.
Addressing newsmen at the end of the meeting Chairman of the body Prof. Ben Nwabueze said “electon must not be postponed; anybody postponing the election at this time will be making a terrible mistake.
“Our position here is that it will be tragedy, catastrophe to postpone the elections. So whatever the odds the elections must take place and the only body competent to postpone or not is INEC and Jega has said made it very clear that there is no question of postponement. And we stand by that. We will not support any shift at all.”
In a communiqué read by the Secretary Prof. Elo Amucheazi the Igbo leaders declared that the best interest of Ndigbo would be better served by Igbo’s supporting the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan in the February 14th election.
They pointed out that in choosing between the two foremost presidential candidates the Igbo’s recognize that the choice is between “the supremacy of Sharia Law and supremacy of the Nigerian Constitution.
“Between constitution dictatorship and constitutional democracy; between rule of the oligarchy of retired Generals and constitutional government.”
The group claimed that the APC candidate Gen. Muhamadu Buhari has clearly and unequivocally stated in public that he is committed to implementing Sharia law all over the country.
“His background as a former member of the military, reared in the regimented tradition of giving of orders and unquestioning obedience of such orders as well as his antecedent as former Head of the federal military government inclines and acclimatizes him to absolutism and autocracy with the danger it poses, to the emergence of a constitutional dictatorship if elected.
“We are fully aware that Jonathan’s Administration has not seriously addressed the core promises and commitments made to Ndigbo during the 2011 election campaign. Inspite of this is in the best interest of our people that he be re-elected. “
