The major opposition party in Nigeria, the All Progressives Congress (APC,) has come down hard on the electoral umpire on the decision to postpone the polls.
The APC Chairman, John Oyegun, in a press statement, said that the decision was a major setback for Nigerian democracy.
“This is clearly a major setback for Nigerian democracy, and our party is meeting in emergency session to study its implications and will inform Nigerians of its decisions in the next few days.
“In the meantime though what has happened is highly provocative, I strongly appeal to all Nigerians to remain calm and desist from violence and any activity which will compound this unfortunate development,” the statement read.
He also gave an assurance that the APC “will not abandon its commitment to change and will sustain the struggle to establish a new Nigeria”.
The Independent National Electoral Commission in Nigeria (INEC) announced a shift in the general elections dates to March 28 and April 11, 2015.
The new schedule was announced on Saturday by the Chairman of the commission, Professor Attahiru Jega, after meetings with political stakeholders.
Professor Jega said that the commission’s decision was not influenced by any group or individuals.
“We have done wide reaching consultations to enable us have as much input as necessary before taking an informed decision.
“In the series of consultations that we had with stakeholders, the questions constantly posed to them for consideration are; in view of the latest developments, should INEC proceed with the conduct of the general elections as scheduled in spite of the strong advice and if so, what alternative security arrangements are available to be put in place.
“The second is; should INEC take the advice of the security chiefs and adjust the schedules of the general elections within the framework of the constitutional provisions,” Professor Jega said.
The presidency and the PDP have been accused by the APC of forcing the electoral body to postpone the election because it was not prepared.
But a spokesman for President Goodluck Jonathan, Dr. Doyin Okupe said the government had no right to force the electoral body to change the date of the election.
“The Federal Government is not exerting pressure on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to shift the election dates,” he said.
According to him, the government only asked the electoral umpire to ensure that all eligible voters got their Permanent Voters Cards (PVC) before the election.
Dr. Okupe said that the President could not in good conscience endorse an electoral arrangement where people from a section of the country would be excluded from the electoral process due to no fault of theirs or by virtue of just being unfortunate residents of an area under siege of terrorism.
More reactions have, however, continued to trail the shift in the dates of the 2015 general elections.
