The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has hailed the courage and determination of the people of Edo state,
who defied all odds to vote and defend their votes in order to return Gov. Adams Oshiomhole to the
state house for another four years of superlative action.
In a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party
said the good people of Edo state have shown, by the action, that true sovereignty lies with the people.
”The courageous and determined people of Edo state refused to be intimidated by the massive deployment of
security forces by the PDP-controlled federal government. They overcame the shenanigans of a colluding INEC
and rendered irrelevant the dirty tricks of misguided moneybags. In the end, they shut out the do-nothing PDP,”
it said.
ACN said the lessons to be drawn from the party’s landslide victory over the PDP include that even one million
soldiers cannot change the course of history when they confront a determined people, that there is always a
reward for any elected official who truly serves the people, and that the people reserve the inalienable right to
choose those who will lead them.
”But perhaps the biggest lesson for the PDP and its bunch of election manipulators, led by one Mr. Fixer who has
now been fixed for good, is that no good advert can sell a bad product – which the PDP has become in Nigeria.
”The PDP went into the election with a huge war chest, backed by all the big names that included the President,
his deputy, ministers and other top government officials, and still lost to the ACN, which could only muster its
party machinery and showcase the good works of its candidate in his first term. This shows that the so-called federal
might is only useful if it can bring prosperity to the people,” the party said.
It said if the PDP could not score 25% of the total votes cast in the Edo gubernatorial election (meaning it
would have lost the state if Saturday’s election was for the presidency) despite all the money it wasted on the polls,
then the party should now start taking seriously the general belief that it has failed the people of Nigeria since the
country’s return to democratic rule in 1999.
”The message that has been sent to the PDP by Edo voters is clear and unambiguous: Nigerians are ready and eager
to send you packing from many more states and the central government in 2015, irrespective of the amount of dirty
funds at your disposal, or the number of security forces you may deploy, because you have failed in meeting the hopes
and aspirations of the people. We want to hand over the reins of power to a party with a record of performance,” ACN
said.
Alhaji Lai Mohammed
National Publicity Secretary
Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN)
Lagos, Nigeria
July 15th 2012
