By Ufoh Awele Anthony
Copyright independent
Buba Galadima, a chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPC), has stated that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not ready to conduct a credible 2027 general election as he is determined to return as president.
Galadima stated this during an interview on Arise TV’s Prime Time, and according to him, the state institutions have been captured by the present administration; thus, a credible election is impossible.
He said, “This government is not ready to organise a free and fair election. From their antics, you know how they’re destabilising the parties. That suggests that they don’t want an opposition at all during the election.”
According to Galadima, Tinubu is planning to appoint his own ‘Yes Man’ as the INEC Chairman to manage the affairs of the 2027 polls, as Professor Mahmood Yakubu’s tenure ends later this month.
Galadima warned against such, saying it could destabilise the country or lead to another “civil war”.
He said, “I wish it were not true, because if that man becomes the chairman of INEC, be assured that this government is inviting a civil war.”
Responding to issues on early campaigns by political parties, he faulted INEC for failing to enforce campaign regulations.
“This issue of campaigning before being allowed by INEC was started by the government of the day. That suggests that INEC cannot be an umpire in a political environment as we have today,” he said, adding that opposition parties “fell into the trap” of the APC by joining early campaigns.
Also, in recent by-elections, Galadima dismissed APC’s claimed victories, citing Kano and Zamfara as examples where “security forces intimidated voters”.
He added, “They didn’t win a single one. They announced themselves as winners. In Bagwai/Shanono federal constituency, we scored 16,000 against the APC’s 5,000. In another senatorial district, NNPP scored over 5,700 while APC scored only 265.
“Over 30,000 soldiers were drafted to Zamfara for the five polling units’ elections. People were beaten up, people were maimed by the military and sacked. And they wrote the results for themselves and announced it.”
