Soyinka flays Datti for threatening judiciary


•Those questioning legitimacy of Tinubu's victory sore losers —APC 

•APC's desperation for validation proof of mandate theft — Labour Party

Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, has described the comments by Datti Baba-Ahmed, vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in a recent interview as containing "fascistic language", saying he had never seen where the judiciary was threatened on TV as Datti did.

Soyinka spoke as the All Progressives Congress, said that those questioning the legitimacy of the victory of Bola Tinubu in the presidential election could not handle defeat and were, therefore, sore losers.

But Labour Party in a swift response, said APC's desperation for validation was proof of mandate theft.

It would be recalled that on March 22, Datti, had an interview with Channels TV, where he said the country had no president-elect, despite the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, announcing Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as winner of the election. 

The LP vice-presidential candidate also said Tinubu would be leading an unconstitutional government if sworn into office because the APC candidate "has not met requirements of the law".

But reacting to this in an interview on Channels Television's breakfast prpgramme, Sunrise Daily, Soyinka described Datti's remarks as a "kind of do-or-die attitude and provocation" that was contrary to democratic disposition.

He said the LP vice-presidential candidate tried to "dictate to the supreme arbiter of the nation", adding that it was unacceptable.

Soyinka said: "I have never heard anyone threaten the judiciary on television the way Datti did. I heard the kind of menacing, blackmailing language as that to which we were treated by Datti. That kind of do-or-die attitude and provocation is not what I think we have all been struggling for.

"Nearly the totality of Datti's comment in the interview was unbecoming. It was like trying to dictate to the supreme arbiter of the nation, and whatever you think of the supreme court, it is an institution we all refer to sooner or later.

 “But Datti kept saying, in his wisdom, that the supreme court must agree with me. That is what is known as fascistic language and it is not acceptable.” 

Those questioning legitimacy of Tinubu's victory sore losers —APC

Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress, APC, has said those questioning the legitimacy of the victory of Bola Tinubu in the presidential election could not handle defeat.

Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, on Tuesday night, APC spokesman, Felix Morka, said he felt sympathy for them Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and Labour Party, LP, which had both gone to court to challenge the outcome of the election.

“There are people in our democracy who can’t handle the fact that they lost,” Morka said when asked why the opposition sees Tinubu’s mandate as “illegitimate.”

APC's desperation for validation proof of mandate theft — Labour Party

Reacting to this yesterday, Labour Party said the desperation shown by the All Progressives Congress, APC, for validation of its "stolen mandate" was sufficient proof that its claim of victory in the 2023 Presidential election was a hoax.

Chief spokesman for the LP Presidential Campaign, Dr. Yunusa Tanko, said Labour Party was amazed that the APC, which had been in the forefront of asking people to go to court over the electoral process, had now resorted to use of subterfuge.

Tanko said: "As genuine democrats, our candidate, Mr. Peter Obi and his running mate, Dr. Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed and indeed the entire Labour Party family will have no problem congratulating Tinubu or anyone else for that matter, if such a person emerged through free and fair contest.

"It is sad that the APC after its eight disastrous years in power, is still hanging on to propaganda to distract Nigerians from the real issues?

"The other day it was Lai Mohammed who was in Washington exposing the fraud perpetrated by INEC where they refused to upload results from polling units."

Culled from Vanguard

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