Don’t Sell Your Votes, NCP Urges Nigerians

The National Secretary of the National Conscience Party (NCP), Dr Tanko Yunusa, has urged Nigerians not to sell their votes in the forthcoming gubernatorial elections scheduled to hold in some states.

Yunusa told newsmen that selling or buying of votes would amount to mortgaging the future of the country.

He disclosed that the NCP was prepared for the governorship elections in four of the states, having missed the Kogi governorship race.

The national secretary said that its candidate for the Adamawa governorship election was Abdullahi Umar, the Adamawa state chairman of NCP.

Yunusa urged the electorate of the participating states to defend their votes, and said, “Our intention is to raise the awareness that democracy is the best system we can ever have in this country”.

He told newsmen that NCP would cherish every vote given to it by the electorate and would guard it by defending the rights of the people.

“The NCP will cherish and nourish you because it is because of you that we are in power and it is because of you that we have sworn to protect the constitution and do what it says.

“We believe that even if we get one vote at the elections, that particular vote means millions to us,” he said.

Yunusa, who condemned INEC’s de-registration of some political parties as counterproductive, said, “it can cause a lot of problem for democracy”.

He said, “We are suggesting that that particular portion of the electoral act should be revisited.”

This, he said, was because it’s only in anarchy that political parties would be de-registered, considering the struggle to enthrone democracy in Nigeria.

“Democracy should be open for everybody, you should register your political party and if you win okay, but there should be a level-playing ground for everybody to contest for a free and fair election.”

According to him, rather than de-register political parties, funds should be given to parties to contest elections.

Yunusa said that the opposition should not be labelled as enemies, but be perceived as raising the standard of governance for the people.

“So they should see most of our positions as an advantage to them because it helps in uplifting democracy and eventually lets the people see the dividends of democracy and quality leadership.”