By: Emmanuel Fateman
AN ADDRESS BY CAPT. IBRAHIM MSHELIA THE GOVERNORSHIP CANDIDATE OF THE LABOUR PARTY IN THE MARCH 18TH GOVERNORSHIP ELECTION IN BORNO STATE.
AT A MEDIA BRIEFING ON THE TOXIC CAMPAIGN PATTERN BY THE APC GOVERNORSHIP CANDIDATE AND INCUMBENT GOVERNOR OF BORNO STATE, PROF. BABAGANA UMARA ZULUM
HELD ATTHE CONFERENCE HALL OF THE NIGERIAN UNION OF JOURNALISTS (NUJ) SECRETARIATE, UTAKO, ABUJA
MARCH, 13, 2023
Good day gentlemen of the Press. Apologies I had to reschedule this press briefing earlier scheduled for 1PM. I had an emergency that came up and needed my attention. Thank you.
The purpose of this press briefing is to bring to your attention, the unhealthy campaign utterances being perpetrated by the current Governor of Borno State, Prof. Babana Zulum, who is the APC Governorship candidate in the forth coming March 18 Gubernatorial election in the state.
As you are already aware, I am the Governorship hopeful for Brno State, vying on the platform of the Labour Party.
By way of summary, I am in this race because I seek to introduce good and inclusive governance in Borno State. I am in this race because it is my desire to elevate the quality of lives of Borno citizens and also to develop the human resources of the state. I also intend to make the state more peaceful, progressive and sustainable.
Back to the kernel of my briefing. During his campaign in Biu, Southern Borno, which happens to be my zone, the governor was publicly inciting the citizens to take to violence should the APC candidates lose at the polls.
Prof. Zulum who spoke in Hausa Language said at the campaign that: “during the forthcoming elections, we are voting for governorship. Stand up and make sure our votes are high. Let’s also have all the nine seats in the State House of Assembly in Southern Borno. I don’t want anyone of them to lose. I am the governor; I have apologized to everyone in this zone. But I will like to tell you something, only God gives power. I don’t have the capability to give power. But I swear, in my capacity, I won’t leave anyone that will insult the traditional leaders to get into the House of Assembly. God gives power but if God gives them power, “Biri Mini, Kare Jini”…”
I strongly condemn this statement as electoral violence can breed unimaginable consequences and a governor should not be seen to promote election violence.
I am peace loving and I have been running my campaigns based on real issues and not issuing threats to opposition parties like the governor has done.
The clandestine agenda of some agents of political instability have perfected plans to turn the forth coming elections to a battle field and are just waiting to unleash violence. They think, this is the only way to railroad themselves into victory. They must be stopped.
We have gathered on good authority that, having received the shock of their lives in the last elections wherein the people expressed their discontent with the lingering shenanigans in governance, through their votes, those who are in government in Borno State, have chosen bloodletting as option to retain power, against the collective resolve of the people for a positive change; which the Labour Party and my candidature represents.
Revered members of the fourth estate, I am shocked that desperation could reach a killer level of a seating governor, resolving to step on our people’s blood to attain selfish re-election, as will be seen in the video clips I will share you.
And it brings us to the question of whose interests are our current political leaders really protecting? I found it impossible to reason that a political office holder, with mandate.to serve the people, would contemplate murder as an option to serve.
However, this is the sad situation we found ourselves in Borno State. The seating governor is hell bent on retaining power at all cost and he is not hiding his preparedness to kill maim and destroy any hindrance on his way.
As law abiding citizens, we have decided not to lock horns with the rejected and the desperate but rather walk the path of peace to assured victory.
We therefore call the attention of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Mohammadu Buhari, and all the relevant security tangencies to ensure the full protection of lives and property in the coming elections by ensuring that there is a credible election, devoid of manipulations and violence.
thank you.
I can now take your questions.
