The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the invasion of the United States of America Congress, by persons they described hoodlums, adding that America used to be a baseline for measuring democracy in other countries.
The party further stated that the events in the US have shown how the integrity of a president can complement the workings of national institutions.
The party made its position known in a statement issued on Saturday by the secretary of its Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), Senator John James Akpanudoedehe.
The party also added that upon ultimately gaining victory in 2015, the Buhari administration had carried out fundamental reforms to strengthen national institutions, citing non-interference in the functions of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as one of its democratic credentials.
“The events of the past 72hrs in the United States of America is, to say the least condemnable. Over time, the elections of the US has been used as a touchstone for elections in other democracies.
“It is settled that strong institutions are fundamental to the sustenance of democracies. However, this US election saga strongly underscores the fact that the integrity of the country’s leader essentially complements the workings of these institutions.
“President Muhammadu Buhari contested and lost elections a couple of times and followed the process through to the Supreme Court on all accounts. This is an outstanding credential of a true democrat,” APC stated.
Adding that “the APC has contested elections; won some, lost some without splitting hairs. In fact, at some point, the APC lost over 5 states to the PDP, yet we allowed democracy to prevail. We have remained resolute in our belief that in every electoral contest, the popular will must prevail.
“This is a far cry from the days of the do-or-die politics of PDP, where civilians took control of the security apparatus to subvert the people’s will and determine the outcome of elections.”
According to the party, electoral reform is a core plank of the programs of the APC-led administration and a legacy that Mr president has promised to bequeath to Nigerians.
“Other institutional reforms include the excision of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and inauguration subsequently by Mr President, as advised by the EGMONT GROUP, to eliminate the siphoning of Local Government funds and to entrench financial autonomy for local government Councils in Nigeria.
“Recall that successive PDP governments rejected local government autonomy which hitherto encouraged undue interference in the running of local government administration by state governments and was linked to restiveness among the youth.
“The signing into law by Mr President on May 2020, of ‘the Executive Order No. 10 of 2020 for the implementation of Financial autonomy of State Legislatures and State judiciaries and other related matters’ is a bold statement on institutional reforms. These are aimed at strengthening these institutions. When they are financially independent, then they can be firm and fair in their decisions.
