“I am educating Nigerians. Rise up for your right, no justice of Supreme Court will give you democracy,” those were the exact words of Datti Baba-Ahmed, as he charged Nigerians to rise up and defend their democracy.
Datti Baba-Ahmed was the vice presidential candidate of the Labour Party at the February 2023 presidential election.
You see, immediately after the results of the 2023 Presidential election were announced, supporters of Peter Obi, globally known as ‘Obidients’ had set plans in motion to storm the streets to protest.
They wanted to protest the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Their anger was due to numerous reasons particularly the many irregularities that played out during the election.
But Peter Obi, casting his full weight on the judiciary, called for calm.
The Journey
After he called for calm, Obi and his legal team, fully prepared with loads of evidence embarked on a journey to reclaim his ‘stolen mandate’.
Perhaps, what fueled Obi’s optimism and trust in the judicial system was the fact that through the verdict of the court, he became governor of Anambra State. Hence, one cannot entirely blame him for putting all his eggs in one basket (the judiciary ).
The former Governor of Anambra began his legal battle with Bola Tinubu and INEC at the Presidential Elections Petition Tribunal (PEPT) with the Appeal Court as its battlefield.
However, after numerous accusations, defenses, and presentations of evidence, the tribunal, to the greatest surprise of many, said that the Labour Party candidate did not present any evidence to back his claims against Tinubu or INEC.
Not only that, just like the announcement of the election results, the judgment was delivered at night, when Nigerians were deep in their sleep.
The Next Stop
The declaration had left many Nigerians in shock. “This country is a joke”, they concluded in displeasure.
“They really take us for a fool”, others said.
As the anger continued to boil, Nigerians had again resolved to protest.
But then again, Obi called for calm, with his hopes on the Supreme Court this time.
Peter Obi approached the Supreme Court with all amount of certainty.
This was because, aside from the numerous evidence he had, a clear evidence of certificate forgery against Tinubu had emerged.
Indeed it was time to nail Tinubu and expose the many ‘frauds’ carried out by the electoral body, INEC.
Judgment Day came and Nigerians who had already predicted the outcome based on previous experience Watched on with little hope, yet heavy prayers for a miracle.
At the end of the day, the Supreme Court affirmed the presidency of Bola Tinubu.
End Of The Road
Now, having explored all possible means to reclaim his mandate, Obi in a press conference informed Nigerians of the end of his journey.
Perhaps Obi has given up, but Datti, his vice presidential candidate still believes that there is hope, and that hope is Nigerians.
Datti Baba-Ahmed has asked Nigerians to rise for themselves.
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To him, the Supreme Court will not give them the true democracy that they desire.
Datti made this charge while appearing on an Arise TV broadcast on Monday.
He challenged Nigerians to stand up and fight for their democracy.
Fight For Democracy
“Nigerians are not yet ready to do this as I am speaking to you. The likes of my former friends who will say it is treason and all that.
“I am educating Nigerians, rise up for your right, no justice of Supreme Court will give you democracy,” Datti said.
Datti suggested that Nigerians wielded the power to kick out non-performing government.
He pointed out that power and sovereignty remains with the people.
