Insecurity: Minimise Large Political Rallies,  APC Chieftain Advises Parties

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Sam Nkire, has advised political parties to minimise  huge political rallies due to the insecurity in the country.

Nkire in a statement issued yesterday also advised the public, especially those who has no role to play in the rallies, to stay home and watch the event on television.

The APC chieftain said he had been a Presidential Campaign Council member of three Presidents, Olusegun Obasanjo (2003); Musa Yar’adua (2007) and Muhammadu Buhari (2015), stressing that  the level of insecurity of those days and years were nothing  compared to the insurgency, carnage, arson and destruction of the present time.

Nkire  added that there were already ominous signs of increased insecurity at campaign rallies with recent reports of attacks on a few presidential campaign rallies, but added that those incidents were not enough to stop political rallies totally.To this end, he urged  political parties, especially APC must consider increased use of other campaign tools such as door-to-door messaging, electronic, print and social media, while “de-emphasizing huge gathering of people in these days of insurgent activities and bombings.”

According to him, a dead man can no longer live to witness the promises of better Nigeria being made by the Presidential candidates such as Bola Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi or Rabiu Kwankwaso.

He noted that  he was not in support of those who may be calling for postponement or making insinuations for the postponement of the general election due to insecurity.

“The election must hold in order to defeat the insurgency, as not holding the election will mean a defeat for Nigeria and our military,” Nkire said.