Governors promise not to rig April elections

By Taiye Agbaje

February 10, 2011 06:29AM

The governors of the 36 states of the federation wrapped up a meeting in Abuja on Tuesday night promising Nigerians that they would not be involved in rigging the April elections. The closed-door meeting was presided over by the chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum and Kwara State governor, Bukola Saraki, and lasted for over five hours. The governors also promised to allow opposition parties to survive in their respective states in the interest of the development of democracy in the country.

The governors also sought a review of the revenue allocation formula, setting up a six-person committee to work on the matter and submit recommendations for the consideration of the forum. The members of the committee are the governors of Sokoto, Niger, Enugu, Adamawa, Lagos and Rivers states. Babatunde Fashola, the governor of Lagos state, is the chairman of the committee. The governors also signed an undertaking which included the following statements: “To commit to free, fair, credible and transparent electoral process in the upcoming elections; to remain unflinchingly committed to democracy and the integrity of the electoral process.”

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