Media Director of the Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Mr Femi Fani-Kayode, says it was the electoral umpire that postponed the election and not the President.
He was reacting to the statement by the former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, accusing President Jonathan of forcing the postponement on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
In a telephone interview with Channels Television Mr. Fani-Kayode explained that President Goodluck Jonathan had said that he was not behind the postponement of the elections.
“It is not the Government of President Jonathan that changed the dates of the election or postponed it. It was INEC, everybody knows this.
“The reasons that INEC adduced to that are reasons I believe are justifiable and there were also other reasons; PVCs and so on and so forth, whereby 34% of Nigerian people would have been disenfranchised, if that election had gone on today.
“So I think it was the right and proper thing for INEC to postpone the elections,” Fani-Kayode said, adding that his team would still respond to Obasanjo’s allegations at the appropriate time.
He further explained, “This is a decision that was made by the military themselves and they have given that assessment and said that in six weeks they would be able to do more than enough to be able to create the necessary stability in the north-east.
“It goes to show that perhaps the former president did not fully understand the rationale behind this decision.
“It wasn’t just about getting rid of the unrest or the insurgency and the rebellion in the north-east, it was also about ensuring that we have enough troops on ground throughout the rest of Nigeria so that those soldiers could help the Police to ensure that there is no violence during the elections.
Fani-Kayode also said that the President had no plan to remove the INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega. Therefore the former president’s allegation is unfounded.
“President Obasanjo has got his facts wrong,” he said, asking all Nigerians to be less critical of the Government.
