The governorship candidates in Uyo Akwa Ibom State whose petitions are before the elections tribunal for 2023 have been urged by Reverend Richard Peters, a priest in the African Church, to consider using the sizeable resources they would spend pursuing their case and assisting their supporters who are struggling financially.
Three of the State’s major opposition parties, the Young Progressives Party (YPP), the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), have hurried to the tribunal to protest Pst. Umo Eno’s victory in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
After the Exchange of Pulpit service at The African Church, St. Michael’s Cathedral, Uyo, Peters issued a warning, saying that the tribunal’s ruling would not affect the outcomes declared by INEC because all parties, including security personnel, independent international observers, and journalists, had deemed the elections free, fair, and credible.
While urging them to accept the outcome for the benefit of the State as a whole, he added that it would be a waste of time and resources to set out on an adventure that would fail.
He claims that “the Nigerian constitution has granted the right to remedy in court to anyone who feels wronged or unsatisfied in an election or any other subject. However, when looking at the election reports for Akwa Ibom State, 95% of them indicate that there was no case of disenfranchisement and that the election was free, fair, and credible.
“I believe that for these candidates to file foolish petitions for the elections they lost before the tribunal would be a waste of time and money. If they truly loved the State, they should embrace the governor-offer elect of reconciliation; he is willing to collaborate with anybody who has the people’s best interests at heart and is ready to welcome constructive ideas.
Why make the trip from the state level to the tribunal and then to the supreme court a pointless diversion? After all, is said and done, resources are being wasted. Why not make use of such tools to empower your fans and give them purpose in life?
“For me, all the contenders were competent, but no one will win at the same time; there will always be one winner, and since the people have already selected him, others should support him,” the candidate said.