The Coalition of Civil Society Organisations and Political Parties for Good Governance has asked President Bola Tinubu to strip the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 elections, Atiku Abubakar of the national honour of Grand Commander of The Order of Niger (GCON) bring the country’s image to disrepute.
The Convener of the Coalition, Dr. Lilian Ogbole made the call while addressing a press conference on Thursday in Abuja.
She stated categorically stripping Atiku of his national honour that would serve as a deterrent to others so that Nigerians could begin to henceforth attach some regard to the office of the president.
Ogbole was of the opinion that the former vice president was definitely not the man Nigeria could be comfortably entrusted in his hands if his appalling and noxiating leadership antecedents are anything to go by.
Her words: “The fact that Alh. Atiku Abubakar serially lost his bid to become the President of Nigeria isn’t enough reason why he should deliberately drag the image of Nigeria, and that of the coveted office of the Vice President, which he once occupied in the mud. This is unacceptable to us, and we will not henceforth sit down and watch him do such a thing.
“As stakeholders in the business of nation building, we wish to use this medium to call on his excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, to utilize the authority confined on him by the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, to protect the image and interest of the country by stripping Alh. Atiku Abubakar Sadiq of the national honours of Grand Commander of The Order of Niger (GCON).
“You will agree with us that a man with Atiku’s character is not honourable and does not deserve to keep the award that is meant for honourable men and women of repute.”
She noted that if Atiku’s recent press conference aptly described as a face saving gimmick to capture power from the back door by weeping casual sentiments by fabricating and speculating lies that has been globally verified and completely buried forever, Peter Obi’s belated press conference of October 11th 2023, over the same issue, was at best childish, shameful and laughable.
Ogbole emphasised that rather than providing evidence to contradict Tinubu’s submissions to INEC, Obi laughably requested the President to help him with evidence that would invalidate the certificates and information submitted to INEC.