Scores of protesters under the aegis of The Natives yesterday staged a peaceful protest in Abuja, to warn the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, against intimidating and harassing the judiciary and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over their defeat in the recently held presidential poll.

Led by Mr Smart Edwards, the group enjoined the duo and their supporters to have faith in the judiciary instead of constituting a threat to democratic rule.

The group, alongside the supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Tinubu, said they will no longer take lightly the intimidation by the supporters of Peter Obi (Obidients) and supporters of Atiku Abubakar (Artilators).

The rally which had representatives of the National Association of the Nigeria Students (NANS) and other various youths groups in attendance temporarily paralyzed the movement of vehicles at the Federal Secretariat to the Presidential Villa on Monday.

Edward in his address noted: “We also have a message for the PDP candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; Your Excellency, it is your time to test the court and not to intimidate the court. It is your time to retreat and retire or reset and re-contest again if your party is not tired of you.

“Your inability to be consistent in a party like Bola Ahmed Tinubu shows it is all about you alone. No sir, the Supreme Court is not about you, the Appeal Court is not about you, even the Tribunal is not about you, it is about the rule of law.

“So, today we are putting the nation on notice that no one will be allowed to intimidate the Nigerian Judiciary any longer, we will not entertain it. These judges and the judiciary are the most crucial party of the hope that democracy holds.

“We want to say categorically that Bola Ahmed Tinubu of APC won the election. The Lagos state he lost should have been a taboo but the Democrat in him publicly accepted the outcome without calling for anybody’s head," he said.

While commending INEC for a job well done, The Native’s supreme leader said no election all over the world is devoid of itches.

He alleged that some PDP elements made efforts to bribe some INEC officials without success.

“INEC must be allowed to do their work without molestation. Nobody is talking about the recorded voices of the PDP players which went viral recently where they were scheming to bribe or corner the INEC officials.

“To INEC, therefore, you have done well. Please go ahead with the conduct of Saturday’s governorship election as we look forward to a large turnout rather than the apathy we witnessed during the presidential election,” they added.

The group also commended President Muhammadu Buhari for allowing a free, fair and credible election that produced the President-elect, Bola Tinubu.

Edwards, while appealing for cooperation to move Nigeria forward, also called on all Nigerians to give the President-elect, Tinubu, a chance to reset the country in a way that will benefit all and sundry. (Guardian)

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