The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has reacted to the comment of Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
Wakadaily earlier reported that the former Vice President, Atiku, said he is in talk with the candidates of the New Nigerian People Party, Rabiu Kwankwaso and Labour Party’s Peter Obi for possible support.
Atiku added that the duo of Obi and Kwankwaso are not in anyway a threat to his chances of winning at the February 25, poll. He made this known in an interview with BBC Hausa service on Tuesday.
Reacting to that, the NNPP National Chairman, Professor Rufai Ahmed Alkali urged Atiku Abubakar to respect his age, however, said that the party was not in talks with him over a possible alliance.
Addressing Journalists in Abuja Alkali said: “Our members have been worried because we have huge crowds in the South and in the North. Our presidential candidate is campaigning. Our gubernatorial candidates, Senatorial candidates, House of Representatives candidates and the State House of Assembly candidates have been campaigning.
“Since we came up with this mantra for a new Nigeria, we’ve not been engaged in unnecessary controversy. As a responsible party, we have been taken for granted. We are not in talk with Atiku.
The idea of the northern agenda is not true. The election of 2023 is different. Some leaders whose agenda is to work for some candidate, want a northern candidate. We kept quiet when Atiku said he was the Northern candidate. They talk about a government of national unity. Nobody is talking about that when it is convenient but we have no talk with Atiku and we are not planning an alliance with Atiku. He should respect his age and he can’t force anyone to endorse him.”
The NNPP National Chairman added that, “We are following the INEC guidelines and the electoral act.
“We produce agents in all the polling units. Most of these parties making noise today don’t have agents. The PDP of yesterday is not the PDP of today. Is not the party of Abubakar Rimi, Sunday Awoniyi, Sule Lamido, Solomon Lar and the rest.
“Five governors are not with Atiku. These governors are coming from powerful states. The two others have been sending messages that they will not support Atiku.
“We thought that anyone contesting an election should put his house together. We left the PDP because we knew it would implode. It is not the same party as yesterday. In the next one week, some will leave the PDP.
“What Kwankwanso is doing is unprecedented and that is why they are afraid. This election is for the people. Today, no presidential candidate has done what Kwankwaso has done in this election.
“We want to say that nobody has anything to offer other than Kwankwaso. Kwankwaso has done everything and nothing happen in Nigeria that Kwankwanso will not travel to address such a crisis. It’s Kwankwaso that has been fighting for the North. Kwankwaso can move to any state today because he has no enemy, Alkali said while calling on Atiku to step down for Kwankwaso.”
