The European Union Election Observation Mission has insisted that Kaduna State governor; Nasir El-Rufai’s threat that foreigners who try to intervene in the forthcoming 2019 general election will leave in “body bags” will not stop it from observing the poll. As the EU denies allegation of foreign interference in the elections, El-Rufai, has also denied calling for violence in response to any interference in the internal affairs of Nigeria.
A statement issued on Wednesday by the Press Secretary to the EU Observer Mission, Sarah Fradgley, explained that the EU does not interfere in elections but rather analyzes and makes suggestions. “The EU election observation missions give commentary and analysis and make recommendations about the electoral process. EU election observation missions are impartial, do not interfere in the electoral process, and operate according to a strict code of conduct. We are aware of the comments by the Governor of Kaduna about non-interference by foreigners during a talk show on the elections Tuesday 5 February. The EU only deploys an election observation mission when it is invited to do so by the authorities of a country. The EU has been invited to observe all of the general elections in Nigeria since 1999. Thus this is the sixth time the EU is observing elections in Nigeria.”
El-Rufai had said on National Television Authority’s Tuesday Live, that Nigeria is an independent country and doesn’t need foreigners telling her what to do. “Those that are calling for anyone to come and intervene in Nigeria, we are waiting for the person that would come and intervene, they would go back in body bags,” the Kaduna state governor said.
But the EU monitoring group while reacting to the governor’s comments maintained that “while the security of EU observers is of paramount importance, and will remain under constant review, EU observers will continue their work across the country in the run-up to – and beyond – the 16 February elections. For the last month our team in Abuja, as well as 40 long-term observers across the country, have followed the elections. We’ve met with a wide range of candidates, parties, election officials, security agencies, and civil society organizations and have enjoyed good cooperation at federal and state levels. The mission looks at all aspects of the election, including the campaign tone, the transparency of the election administration, the neutrality of security forces, and the independence of the judiciary,” the statement read.”
On his part, El-Rufai, has denied calling for violence in his comments about foreign interference. The Governor’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Samuel Aruwan, said El-Rufai’s comment was not a call for violence but rather a powerful defense of sovereignty. He explained that El-Rufai is standing firmly against those trying to divide Nigerians on ethnic and religious lines, and was opposed to violence but firmly committed to peace and harmony.
“He stood up for Nigeria’s dignity in the wake of those who would traduce their country and reduce it to the status of a colony in their vain quest for power. The video of his comments is in circulation. Any fair-minded person with modest familiarity with the English language and unimpaired comprehension can understand it. It does not contain any call for violence. It is a powerful defense of sovereignty. Are some sections of our political class implying that they will acquiesce in or collaborate with foreign intervention in our country? Non-interference in the affairs of other countries is a basic principle of international law. Threatening to intervene in another country implies the use of force. Those who are basing their electoral calculations on foreign intervention need to be discouraged. Only the lawful votes of the Nigerian people should make or unmake governments.”
In the past, the governor has shown a propensity for very strong comments. On his Twitter handle, he called the PDP vice presidential candidate, Peter Obi; a tribal bigot based on a claim the former Anambra State governor hindered his movement in the state during the governorship election in 2010. El-Rufai is seeking re-election as governor of Kaduna State. He polarized views when he ditched the tacit Muslim-Christian arrangement in the state to choose a running mate from the same religion with him. He has also been accused of marginalizing Kaduna South in his state and further aggravated those claims by choosing his running mate away from that area of the state.
El- Rufai’s comment is similar to that of a presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, in January who said as much as Nigeria welcomes interests and partnerships for free and fair polls, the government would not condone unfair interference in the country’s internal affairs. Shehu was responding to statements issued by the US, UK and EU diplomatic mission condemning the suspension of Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen. The international bodies said Onnoghen’s suspension could affect the general election and its aftermath. Shehu also said “the three friends of Nigeria” referring to the US, UK and EU hastily reacted in their statements with a certain condescension to this African democracy.
But following El-Rufai’s comment, the main opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) called on the “international community to immediately impose a travel ban on El-Rufai for this inciting comment against peaceful elections in our country.” The PDP also threatened to pull out of the national peace accord before asking the National Peace committee to summon El-Rufai over his comments.
“Any situation that seeks to allow the APC to abuse the tenets of the accord will definitely force our party to review our signatory to the peace process,” PDP spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, said in a statement. We therefore call on the National Peace Committee to immediately summon El-Rufai on his inflammatory remarks against peaceful election in our country,” PDP added. The 2019 peace accord, convened by a former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, was to commit the political parties and candidates to a peaceful poll.
Nasir El-Rufai
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