Former Vice President Atiku says for Nigeria democracy to be fully fledged, it must constantly evolve away from the current practice where the governing elite determines the outcome of elections.
Abubakar, who was the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election, said this in a statement he personally signed in Abuja on Sunday to mark country’s democracy day.
He said that on the occasion of country’s 2023 Democracy Day, it was time for Nigerians to reflect as a people and a country on their journey to becoming a democratic society.
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“For Nigerians who were around during the dark days of military dictatorships, it is important that we appreciate the successes that we have achieved in making democracy the norm of politics in Nigeria.
“But democracy without a corresponding commitment to the principles of fairness and fidelity to the rule of play by stakeholders in the processes of conducting elections still leaves the people prostrate to tendencies of dictatorship.
“For our democracy to be fully fledged, it must constantly evolve away from the current practice where the governing elite determines the outcome of elections.
“Many times, when I take stock of the activism that birthed the current democratic dispensation, I am even more convinced that a lot of work still lies ahead,” he did.
Abubakar said that democracy and the process of democratisation was a constant work in progress.
“While what we celebrate today is a return to civil rule in Nigeria, the desire to make our democracy self-sustaining and independent of anti-democratic elements is the new frontier of participation by all democrats.
“As it requires collective energy and commitment to attain civil rule, it will require a concomitant commitment to advance the cause of democracy and our democratisation process.
“The challenge ahead of us and the future of our democracy will rely heavily on what we do or fail to do today.”
Abubakar said that to achieve this noble goal, Nigerians commitment to the cause of democracy must be eternal.
“Folks on the other side, enemies of democracy, whom we are up against, are not resting. To defeat them, we must do more!”
While congratulating Nigerians in celebration of return to civil rule, Abubakar called for their consciousness to the reality that “democracy in Nigeria remains in bondage and it will need the energy of all of us to rescue it.”
