By Stanley Onyekwere
With less than two weeks to the country’s general elections, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, has called on ethnic associations and their leaders to help maintain peace and harmonious relations in the Territory.
The Minister made at a stakeholder’s forum of all ethnic associations in the FCT- comprising of Eze Igbo of Abuja, Sarkin Hausawan Abuja, Oba of Yoruba of Abuja and the leadership of South-South people resident in the Federal Capital Territory at his official residence in Gwarinpa I District, Abuja.
Mohammed said that the leadership of the ethnic associations comprising of the Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba as well as other ethnic groups in FCT also have very important role to play in the maintenance of peace and therefore charged them to cooperate to ensure rancor-free elections in their respective areas of influence.
He emphasized that all hands must be deck to ensure that peace and harmony continue to prevail in the entire 8,000 square kilometers of the Federal Capital Territory before, during and after the forthcoming presidential and National Assembly elections.
The minister also called on the ethnic leaders to enjoin their people to as a matter of priority collect their permanent voters cards (PVC); stressing “as leaders, you are expected to mobilize your subjects to collect the PVCs to enable them fully participate in the forthcoming elections because it’s their civic responsibility”.
Mohammed thanked them for their support to the present Administration and pointed out that a lot has been achieved in many areas such infrastructure, housing, land administration, education, health, agriculture, transportation and attraction of local and foreign investments.
The Minister however advised the stakeholders not to vote based on religious or ethnic bias even as he stated that so far politics in FCT has been devoid of such parochial tendencies.
“President Goodluck Jonathan has achieved enough to deserve re-election thus, your support would be crucial in this direction,” he added.
