APC drags Patience to ICC over inciting comments
By Bode Olagoke
Abuja
General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) has restated his commitment to the empowerment of Nigerian women, beginning with ensuring that their rights as guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution are protected under his government.
The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) made this known yesterday through a special message to Nigerian women in commemoration of the 2015 International Women’s Day, which falls today.
He said: “My plan for Nigerian women has been made clear in ‘My Manifesto and Vision for Nigeria’.
“However, I would like to use this special opportunity that the world has set aside to celebrate women to reiterate my personal commitment to the advancement of Nigerian women in Nigeria and in the Diaspora.”
Buhari referred to a document he released to the media in December 2014, where he said women would be adequately represented in government appointments.
He also promised to provide greater opportunities for females in education, job creation, and economic empowerment.
“I will recognize and protect women empowerment and gender equality, with special emphasis on economic activities in the rural areas,” he said.
The candidate added that he would use the party’s structures to promote the concept of reserving a minimum number of seats in the state and national assemblies for women.
“Women all over the world are playing an ever increasing role in moving their nations forward both in and outside government,” he said.
“In keeping with the times, my government will ensure that Nigerian women are given the opportunity to rise and play an even more prominent role in moving our great nation forward.”
Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCPCO) said it has made a formal complaint against the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, who during a rally in Calabar, Cross River state, last week, called on PDP supporters to “stone” anyone who came to the state asking for change.
The letter of complaint, signed by Rivers state Governor and Director General of APCPCO, Rotimi Amaechi, will today be dispatched to the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Inspector General of Police (IG) and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), among others.
Amaechi said: “Change, as the entire country must know by now, is the slogan of the APC – the rallying cry of a political party that wishes to bring hope of greater and better things to come for Nigeria and Nigerians. By her statement, Mrs. Jonathan was clearly calling on PDP supporters in Calabar to attack supporters and campaigners of the APC in the state.”
The party likened some of Mrs. Jonathan’s inciting statements and conduct during this political campaign season to those of Mrs Simone Gbagbo, wife of the former president of Cote D’Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo, prior to that country’s 2010 election.
The ICC indicted Mrs. Gbagbo for her part in planning to perpetrate brutal attacks, including murder, rape, and sexual violence, on her husband’s political opponents in the wake of the 2010 election.
“Mrs. Jonathan does not occupy any formal office in the Nigerian government, as the position of First Lady is not recognised by the Nigerian constitution. But Mrs. Gbagbo’s case shows the ICC’s awareness of how someone beyond formal governmental and military hierarchies can be identified as responsible for serious international crimes.”
It pointed out that Mrs. Jonathan’s incontrovertible hate speech not only contravenes the laws of the land, but also goes completely against the Abuja Peace Accord jointly signed by the two presidential candidates, General Muhammadu Buhari and President Goodluck Jonathan – a gesture which is aimed at forestalling violence before, during and after the 2015 elections.
“PDP supporters in the state who may not know better could easily yield themselves to the First Lady’s admonition and embark on a process of wanton stoning and other attacks against APC members,” Amaechi said.
The APCPCO also called on the Nigeria Police to put in place emergency measures to protect the life and property of APC members in Calabar and the entire Cross River state.