The Muslim Media Watch Group of Nigeria ( MMWG) has joined the list of pressure groups in the country , calling on the presidenrial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) , Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to accept result of the presidential election conducted penultimate Saturday.
The Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC), had in the early hours of Wednesday last week declared President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress ( APC) , as winner of the election with 15, 191, 847m votes against 11, 262, 978m votes garnered by Atiku .
But the PDP candidate rejected the results on grounds of alleged rigging and all forms of malpractices , vowing to litigate against the electoral body and APC candidate .
Worried by the development, the Muslim media practitioners at a press briefing in Abuja on Monday, appealed to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to accept the result as a way of emulating former president Goodluck Jonathan who as a sitting president in 2015, conceded defeat to the same Muhammadu Buhari .
The National Chairman of the group, Alhaji Ibrahim Abdullahi said since the election has been adjudged to be free and fair by both local and international observers , the PDP candidate should in the national interest , accept its outcome as announced by INEC and not do anything that will in one way or the other, over heat the polity
He explained that though Atiku Abubakar like any candidate in an election, has the constitutiinal right to approach the court of law if not satisfied with conduct and outcome of an election but he should yield to calls being made by concerned Nigerians to concede defeat for peace to reign in the land and government in power , be more focused .
He said:”We consider the rejection of the presidential election result by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as an attempt to overheat the polity for his personal and not national interest .
” The Muslim Media Watch Group of Nigeria therefore jouns the Sultan of Sokoto and President of the Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs ( NSCIA) , the Jamaatu Nasril Islam and indeed , the entire Muslims of Nigeria to welcome the success of President Muhammadu Buhari for the second term of office , starting from May 29, 2019.
On this basis, we appeal to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar not to do anything that would retard the socio-economic and political interest of Nigeria while he pursues his ambition .
“He should have emulated the former President Goodluck Jonathan who contested four years ago as a sitting president and lost but immediately put a call through to the winner “.
The group however called on the federal government , particularly the various security agencies to step up their operations against criminal elements in any state of the federation before , during and after the coming elections on Saturday.
Meanwhile Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is expected to file his petitions before Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja on Tuesday through his counsels as disclosed by the PDP National Chairman , Prince Uche Secondus on Monday .
