APC to stage peaceful protest to INEC headquarters

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced it will
stage a peaceful procession to INEC headquarters in Abuja on
Thursday to register its disapproval of the Commission's
string of failures in conducting recent elections, including the
Delta Central Senatorial District bye-election and the
'inconclusive' Anambra Governorship poll.
In a statement issued by its Interim National Publicity
Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party vowed to proceed
with the march, despite the illegal move by the police to stop
it.
"We are doing this as a patriotic service to the nation because
INEC as presently constituted is not capable of organizing a
free and fair election again in Nigeria. If the Commission is
not checked, its incompetence and conniving acts could
plunge the country into chaos of unimaginable proportions," it
said.
APC explained that ahead of the march, it wrote a letter to the
FCT police command to inform it of the planned procession
and to request for police escort to forestall a possible
hijacking of the march by sponsored hoodlums.
"To our dismay, however, the FCT Police Commissioner did
not only turn down our request for police escort but also
cheekily advised us to restrict our activity to holding a press
conference within our party headquarters to convey our
grievances to INEC .
"We reject this very patronizing directive from the partisan
FCT police command and hereby states that in exercise of our
constitutional rights, the leadership of the APC will go ahead
with its planned peaceful procession on Thursday, the 28th of
November, to express our dissatisfaction with the corruption-
ridden INEC and to pass a vote of no confidence on the
Commission," the party said.
It said the police should not mistake its letter to the security
agency as a request for permission to stage the procession,
since the law has said no such permission is required.
"When we wrote this letter, we were quite aware of the ruling
of the Appeal Court affirming the decision of Justice Chinyere
of the Abuja Federal High Court the in the case of All Nigeria
Peoples Party vs Inspector General of Police (2006) CHR 181
which said, inter alia: 'If as speculated by law enforcement
agents that breach of the peace would occur, our Criminal
Code has made adequate provisions for sanctions against
breakdown of law and under so that the requirement of a
permit as a conditionality to holding meetings and rallies can
no longer be justified in a democratic society.'
"Being mindful of the position of the law on this issue but as
a law abiding and a patriotic political party, we nonetheless in
our said letter asked the police to provide us with escort
during the procession, in line with international best practices.
That the police
turned down this request speaks volumes about its disdain for
the rule of law.
"We will not be deterred by the blatantly-partisan police, who
have missed another great opportunity to affirm their
neutrality and respect for the rule of law. We will use this
march to prove the point that we shall not condone a Police
Command, however partisan or corrupt, abridging our
constitutional rights.
"While we shall do all in our powers to make Thursday's
procession to INEC as peaceful as possible, Nigerians and the
entire world should hold the FCT police command responsible
for any breakdown of law and order that may be occasioned
by their unprofessional, partisan and illegal action," the APC
said.

Via: Vanguard