PDP Leads Protest Against 2023 Presidential Election

According to reports, the protest is scheduled to take off at 10 am from the PDP headquarters, Legacy House, Maitama, Abuja. Governors Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State, Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Godwin Obaseki (Edo), Bala Mohammed (Bauchi), Darius Ishaku (Taraba), and Ademola Adeleke of Osun State are expected to participate in the march.

The electoral commission had declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) standard bearer, Bola Tinubu, the winner of the election after scoring a total of 8,794,726 votes, representing 25 per cent of the total votes cast in 30 states.

However, the PDP and Labour party have rejected the outcome of the election, with both parties laying claims to victory and vowing to challenge the result in court.

In a memo signed by the Director of Administration on behalf of the Director-General of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council, Tambuwal, the party invited Ayu, the PDP presidential running mate, Okowa, and other governors to the protest march.

Former Senate Presidents David Mark and Bukola Saraki, Board of Trustees members, National Executive Committee members, National Working Committee members, Directors, Deputy and Assistant Directors of the National Election Management Committee, Presidential Campaign Council members as well as Persons Living With Disabilities were also invited.

Participants have been directed to wear black attires in demonstration of the sombre mood of the party.

The PDP Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Ibrahim Abdullahi, in an interview with The PUNCH, explained that the protest was planned to show the party’s disenchantment with the flawed poll, insisting that the election should be cancelled.

However, the APC has cautioned the PDP against inciting the people to break the law with its planned street march. The National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka, noted that it was unfortunate the PDP had to resort to a public disturbance instead of focusing on the court case it filed to contest the results of Saturday’s presidential election.

Some Abuja residents have expressed fears that hoodlums could take advantage of the protest march to foment trouble. They also observed that the situation could get out of control and lead to city-wide unrest.

Chiamaka Godwin expressed hopes for a peaceful protest, adding that she had been working from home for fear of violence since the election.