The Nigerian Presidency has showed their support for the highly criticised foreign intervention comments of the Kaduna Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai when he stated in a live television interview when he stated that foreigners who seek to intervene in the nation’s forthcoming elections will leave in body bags.
Malam Nasir El-Rufai stated unequivocally that Nigeria will not accept any foreign intervention of any kind during the forthcoming general elections. He made this comment while appearing on a program tagged Tuesday Live in the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA). Quoting Malam Nasir El-Rufai, he said that, “Those that are calling for anyone to come and intervene in Nigeria, we are waiting for the person to come and intervene. They would go back in body bags because nobody would come to Nigeria and tell us how to run our country.”
This comment of Malam El-Rufai has been heavily criticised by many as a call for violence against foreigners during the forthcoming elections. Malam Nasir El-Rufai has told all his critics that his comments quoted out of contest as what he meant was the fact that the sovereignty of Nigeria must be respected by foreigners.
In highly criticised comment the spokesperson of President Muhammadu Buhari, Malam Garba Shehu has stated that the federal government, under Mr Buhari, would give a maximum cooperation to election observers and would not disappoint the international community in the forthcoming elections. He also went ahead to assure the international community and all Nigerians that the government is committed to utilising any means with its power to ensuring that the forthcoming election is free, fair and credible.
The presidency also call on the general public to put to rest their criticism of Malam Nasir El-Rufai statement as his latest clarification of his comment on foreign interference on Nigeria’s domestic affairs. The presidency calls the embattled governor’s comment as strong defence of national interest and the general public should be aware that the All Progressive Congress (APC) and all its members vying for different political offices have reposed their faith in democracy through the forthcoming general elections.
Malam Garba Shehu further assures all the citizens of Nigeria and foreign citizens that the administration and the governing party of the APC are of the view that there is no place for violence during and after the forthcoming elections.
He also pointed accusing finger to the major opposition party, the the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for their poor management of the country affairs which had left the country in a sorry state which have have cost lives, jobs, and growth of the country.
