News Rendezvous

INEC Created Its System and Left Window for Corruption- Dr. Sani Adamu

Dr. Sani Adamawa is one of the members of Atiku inner circle and towards the build up to the 2023 general elections, he had warned the PDP against the dangerous effect the fallout with Nyewom Wike and his group would cause the party.

In this interesting piece, Sani bares his mind on the crisis trailing the results of February 25th elections and offers a way forward for Nigerians.

Rendezvous:

Hello sir, nice to have another interesting chat with you.

We must first of all notice that you have been distant, so to say, and quite about your boss Atiku’s campaign, what is going on?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

Thank you very much for having me to share a few words in the happening in our dear country Nigeria. I wonder how you noticed that I have been a little distant from the Waziri of Adamawa because I have a standing policy with the people I admire and the policy is to work on my own, protecting and enhancing their agenda to ensure success without being a burden to  my principal. 

I make my contribution without making noise or seeking unnecessarily publicity to what I do.

I volunteered my services to the Waziri close to two decades ago, using my own resources and ensuring the success of his political agenda for Nigeria. You could recall the extent to which I fought for his cause in 2015 and 2019. 

I was one of those who encourage the 2023 agenda of the Waziri, it was obvious that the Waziri is the candidate to beat in 2023. Thank God that the nomination went according to plan and everything was on track even after the successful conclusion of the 2023 Presidential nominations, I will return to this point later. But to answer your question with regards to my visibility around the Waziri of Adamawa, I wish to state that he knows what we do and I have a direct channel of communication with him. But you  have to appreciate that he has a tight schedule and the task ahead of us demands everyone to be out in the field most of the time.

Rendezvous:

You were one of the first persons closest to Atiku who warned about the dire consequences of the in-fighting between Atiku and the G-5 governors, would you say that crisis has negatively affected his chances given where we are now?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

On the G-5 Governors in the PDP and the infighting within the PDP after the conclusion of the Presidential nominations, I was one of the few that argued in favour of Governor Wike in particular. It was obvious that Governor Wike was the kingpin of the rebel group- the G-5. The usual thing would have been a serious attempt at reconciliation with the aggrieved parties after successfully winning the nominations. I argued that the reconciliation must be spearheaded by the Waziri himself, instead of those who may not appreciate the issues at stake. The Waziri is a party Man and a team player, he was  and still the only one who could fully understand what is or  was at stake, and no one else. Secondly, I made a statement against allowing anyone within the Waziri’s inner circle from making public utterances with regard to the G-5 Governors. Those utterances further inflamed the processes and frustrated the G-5 group. This finally led to what we now have in the Country. I can tell you that is this one of the major causes of the result we are now having. 

There are additional three fundamental reasons why we are where we are today .  It is unfortunate and beyond reasonable comment. Its too early to say much on the outcome of this election. The PDP leadership and the supporters of the Waziri have received the statement from him in good faith. He made the statement to challenge the outcome of this election in Court. I am sure that the Waziri knows what he is talking about as a democrat and a firm believer in due process. He has demonstrated the effort to enrich our democracy through the rule of law. My own comment is to encourage him to continue to guide the PDP and ensure that the party undertakes genuine reconciliation. He should not abandon the PDP or retire from politics because of this unfortunate result. He could offer services to the party and the Country at various levels.

Rendezvous:

In the 2019 general elections, the server was at the center of matters concerning the final outcome of the elections, are we not experiencing a similar thing in what is happening to the BVAS after much assurances, ad-hoc staff could not upload results at the the polling units, what’s your take on it?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

On the question of the INEC server in 2019 and the BVAS in 2023, I can tell you that INEC is in complete control of the situation. INEC creates the window for corruption to filter into the process. INEC was all smooth talk and grammar, but practically no transparency. What is merely happening is for INEC to devise a plausible way to achieve corrupt objectives which could be difficult to trace from the  outside. It is obvious that no matter the evidence available, upturning a Presidential election after its conclusion is the most difficult to achieve in Nigeria. 

In fact, the adage to, “win by all means and prepare to hire the best lawyers and plan to corrupt the judge,” is fundamentally true in Nigeria. The truth is that the politicians will never leave INEC to institute transparency in the electoral process. INEC is at the mercy of money bags. INEC is the only institution where  incorruptible people get corrupted beyond imagination. You go into INEC as a comrade and come out as a corrupt capitalist of unimaginable proportion. 

The corrupt system within INEC can never be defeated in the present circumstances in Nigeria. The situation leaves us wondering, BVAS or Servers or people, or system.

Rendezvous:

Since the system in your opinion is intrinsically corrupt, what is your advice on the dabacle and conundrum we have found ourselves with your party and other parties rejecting INEC results, how do you see your party and candidate emerging from this?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

My advice to PDP, LP and other parties rejecting the result churned out by INEC is to seek lawful means to correct the wrongs. 

The chances of all the parties rejecting the result to receive fair hearing from INEC or the Courts is really unknown. We need to wait to see what evidence the party agents have with them; this evidence shall be presented to the Presidential flag bearers of the parties. I expect that the legal expert will examine them and determine the chances of their admissibility in the Court of Law. Finally, the determination must be made as whether that could change the result of the election or not. I expect that if the evidence available cannot alter the result or the outcome of this election in the  Court of law, the Waziri of Adamawa and the other parties will take appropriate decision on the way forward. 

I pray that the party and the Flag bearer of the PDP emerges from this stronger and more united. The delay in conceding defeat and calling BAT to congratulate him on behalf the party and its supporters is due to the uncertainty in the fairness of INEC, and probably the evidence available does not warrant immediate action and congratulating the “purported winner”, this is as far as the party is concerned. The Waziri I know would have called BAT and congratulate him, while conceding defeat. So we may need to wait a little and get a clearer picture of the situation.

Rendezvous:

How worried are you about the performance of INEC after every elections circle, it seems to be a vicious circle of a struggling with the fundamentals of what forms the core essence of elections in the country?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

I have already stated above that INEC is a hostage to power, influence, and money, no one could have imagined this situation INEC brought through the delayed uploading of the result as earlier promised. The preparation INEC made should not have ended in this manner. Prof. Mahmud Yakubu raised the hope of Nigerians and disappointed us at the most crucial moment. The reality is that INEC is on its own, with its own systems and processes. And once the process is completed, righting the wrongs is an uphill task. The government usually refrain from interference to protect the independence of INEC. I can tell you that INEC is in a position to hurt anyone it wishes, through the system that surround INEC and its operation. The core essence of election in Nigeria is to truly reflect the aspiration and votes of the people. 

That is a sacred responsibility of INEC, and failure to reflect the votes of the people is a crime against the heavens. It should not be tolerated in all of its ramifications. It must be remedied immediately. Telling contestants to go to Court if they are not satisfied, is a wrong approach. INEC should rectify itself and right the wrongs within its own system. It is after this that the legal processes will be of benefit to all parties and Nigerians.:

Rendezvous:

How would you advise that Nigerians move forward from this crisis brewing, seeing that there is tension building up hinged on the integrity of the electoral body and how quickly should this be resolved before it degenerates into chaos?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

Going forward, my advice to Nigerians is to remain vigilant, avoid any form of violence, any unrest will be of no benefit to anyone. Expressing your dissatisfaction through violence could only lead to more violence and loss of lives. 

The issues at stake must be resolved through the systems, no matter our collective misgivings of the systems. It remains the only viable way.

Rendezvous:

INEC has congratulated the APC Candidate and issued a certificate of return to Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the president elect of Nigeria, has that met the provisions of the constitution in your opinion?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

INEC knows very well that BAT has met the constitutional provision to be declared the winner. That is why it has gone ahead to issue the certificate of return to President and Vice President. I have heard  people arguing on the 25% of the FCT. This should be left to experts, but as things now stand, BAT has legitimately met the provision and INEC is right to issue the certificates and congratulate the winners. 

Rendezvous:

It seems INEC is under trial about what you observed in 2019, has INEC given Nigerians the credible, free and fair elections they asked for?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

INEC is always under trial as long as it conducts election on behalf of Nigerians. That is why I said above that the responsibility of INEC is to Nigerians and not the government or Money bags. INEC is occupying a position of Sacred trust. INEC should not take this lightly. That is why you see observers passing comments saying that the election has not been transparent. 

INEC should take these comments seriously, examined them and rectify the situation. Referring people to court after committing deliberate and unlawful action by some bad eggs entrenched in the system is not fair. Again, we should exercise patience and not pass judgement until we see clear evidence of INEC’s culpability or otherwise. INEC is definitely under trial, and it must not take it lightly. :

Rendezvous:

Generally speaking, what is your rating of Prof. Mahmood Yakubu and how do we move from here as a nation?

Dr. Sani Adamu:

Prof Mahmud Yakubu is operating in a system where no one goes in and comes out unscathed. The picture we have of him before this unfortunate incidence of the 2023 election is that of an upright Nigerian, who is above average in terms of transparency, honesty, and accountability. 

Blaming the INEC Chairman without any evidence is damaging to his character and intentions. If you can recall there are some audio going round on how some of the politicians trying to hack the BVAS and so on. So, I advise that we wait before assessing his character or culpability in this unfortunate incidence. I urge him to look into the grievances of all parties and mitigate them before anyone heads to Court..

Rendezvous:

Thanks for your time

Dr. Sani Adamu:

You are welcomed and an glad to have a chat with you again