APC Vows to Defy Police Order on Protest

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The leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) said yesterday that it would go ahead and 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, despite the Police not approving of it.

The party said it would lead its members on protest march against shortcomings witnessed in recent elections, including the Delta Central Senatorial District bye-election and the 'inconclusive' Anambra Governorship poll.

Interim National Chairman of APC, Chief Bisi Akande, told a meeting of leaders of the party on Tuesday that its request for a peaceful protest march was turned down by the Police which however advised the party to hold a press conference at the party's headquarters to ventilate whatever grievances it might have.

A statement by APC’s Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, vowed to proceed with the march, despite the 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 organising 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.

“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 patronising 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.