Elections: 13 governorship candidates sign peace pact in Gombe

Thirteen out of 14 governorship candidates in Gombe State on Wednesday signed a peace accord, ahead of the forthcoming general elections.

The event  was organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in collaboration with the police and other security agencies in the state.

Alhaji Umar Ibrahim, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Gombe State, said the agreement was to ensure peaceful conduct of the elections, which he said, would translate into credible, free and fair elections.

Ibrahim said that violence-free elections remained the bedrock for all stakeholders in the state to benefit from the process.

“Peace is an essential ingredient to the conduct of credible and acceptable elections, which must not be compromised.

“Campaigns cannot go on. Voters will not turn out en masse to exercise their franchise in an atmosphere of unrest, intimidation and harassment,” he said.

Ibrahim said the exercise was also part of efforts to protect and develop Gombe State.

He noted that ”it is important that we commit to violent-free campaigns in the coming days and peaceful conduct during and after the elections”.

According to him, election is a fundamental right and no registered voter should be denied that right by any means.

On absence of the PDP governorship candidate in the state, Mr Jibrin Barde, Ibrahim said: “we are not coaxing anybody here or forcing the accord on anyone.

“It is in our collective interest, so we are not saying everyone will come and sign.

“We have 14 governorship candidates in the state and out of them, 13 signed. So I think it is fair.”

Ibrahim appealed to all political parties and their candidates to ensure compliance with the peace accord.

He also urged the candidates to caution their supporters against engaging in whatever that could threaten peace before, during and after the elections.

The Gombe State Commissioner of Police, Mr Oqua Etim, assured all political stakeholders and residents of the state of their safety, adding that measures had been put in place to ensure protection of lives and property.

Etim advised candidates to caution their supporters, saying that the police under his leadership would not condone attempts to breach peace in the state.

In an interview with newsmen, Gov. Inuwa Yahaya and the candidate of the APC in the state, said that peace remained a collective task for all stakeholders, in view of its relevance to election and governance.

Yahaya assured residents that his administration would continue to support peaceful co-existence in the interest of the development of the state.

On his part, Mr Khamisu Mailantarki, the gubernatorial candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party in Gombe State, also said his party remained committed to peaceful elections.

Mailantarki said his ambition would be pursued peacefully, noting that that was why he compared politics to football where after the match, there would be exchange of jerseys and handshakes.

“I have been making calls for peaceful elections. Gombe State is far better than anyone of us.

“So we will stay on that course and pray that the security agencies do their jobs,” he said.

NAN/N.O