Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Okey Samuel Mbonu, on Monday, congratulated the people of Edo State Nigeria, and Godwin Obaseki; on the free and fair gubernatorial election, held on September 19, 2020.
Mbonu, n a statement from Washington, DC, USA, stated that “this election may signal the potential beginning of sanity in the electoral process in Nigeria.”
Continuing, Mbonu stated that, “if the electoral umpires and the various parties can go a step further, by sanitizing the internal democratic nomination process of the parties, then Nigeria would have started a steady climb to political stability.”
Mbonu also hailed the United States, for its new visa ban policy, on persons who perpetrate electoral rigging, instigate electoral violence, and corrupt the political process in Nigeria.
Mbonu stated that “he and other new-generation leaders will lead efforts to bring election riggers, corrupt officials, and other violent intimidators, to the attention of influential countries, including the US, EU, UK, and UAE, where corrupt Nigerian officials run to hide their loot, after stealing resources meant for public use in Nigeria.
Mbonu stated that “2023 will be the ultimate test, as to whether Nigeria finally moves to credible elections, or whether the country will be classified a failed state.”
Continuing, Mbonu stated that “the practice where ex-officials will steal massive resources meant for their states, buy their way through the courts, and then use their loot to run for higher office in Nigeria must be brought to a halt, via policies like the “Visa Ban”.
He continued that other countries besides the United States, where these culprits bring their extended families, for luxury living, medical tourism, and to invest stolen loot, must follow suit.”
He continued that “no one with an active criminal case should be contemplating running for any office in Nigeria in 2023.”
