Despite assurances by President Muhammadu Buhari that he is keen to see a successful 2023 general election, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, said the incessant attacks on facilities of the Independent National Electoral Commission, is a pointer to the fact the President is not interesting in seeing a smooth transition of power. HURIWA said in a statement signed by its national coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, the seeming lack of will to arrest and prosecute the arsonist destroying INEC facilities was a shameful conducted by the government of President Buhari.
“The regime of President Muhammadu Buhari is to be blamed for the continued attacks on INEC offices. The government has refused to arrest or even prosecute any of the suspected attackers let alone punish them through the courts to serve as deterrents to desperate and violent-inclined politicians. “The government, despite its ineffective war on the proliferation of light weapons, failed to stop non-state actors from moving around with sophisticated arms and weapons of mass destruction which they use to attack strategic national security assets especially in the South-East and in the North-West. “Also, Buhari’s refusal to sack his non-performing inefficient, ineffective and rudderless National Security Adviser and the IGP, Comptroller General of customs, immigration, DG DSS, DG NIA, under whose jurisdiction internal security operations ought to be made effective, shows that there is a grand plot from the top to sabotage the election. “The statement by INEC Chairman is therefore a confirmation of the well-organised plots to destabilise democracy. The President should reorganise the security architecture to bring in persons from other parts of Nigeria in line with federal character principles rather than the domination of the internal security institutions by Fulani Muslim Northerners from the same ethnicity as the President. “Nigerians must be vigilant to demand action from the Federal Government to ensure that the coming general election in about 70 days time is not actively sabotaged from within the government in Abuja.”
President Buhari who arrived Nigeria from an eight day stay in the USA said he is ready to ensure the success of the election: “Because I made sure INEC was given all the resources they asked for. I don’t want any excuses that they were denied funds by the government.”