By Dickson Omobola

Youth Alliance for Tinubu, YAT, has lashed out at supporters of Peter Obi, the second runner-up in the February 25 presidential election for discrediting the outcome of the poll conducted by Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

The group said their comments regarding the poll pose a threat to Nigeria’s democracy, noting that they must learn to handle defeat.

YAT, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Bello Bala Shagari, added that President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s defeat in Lagos signified the credibility of the election, saying that democratic governments around the world must stand up in defense of Nigeria’s democracy.

The statement reads: “It is our belief that the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigeria armed forces, His Excellency Muhammad Buhari has done everything possible to ensure free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria. Even though we disagree with the monetary policies which restricted the circulation of cash, it is widely accepted by observers that the decision has curbed vote buying during the elections. Although it was an obvious mischief to put the ruling party in a disadvantaged position by reducing its popularity among voters, it has failed woefully in that respect.

“It is also true that before and during the election, Nigerians have praised the introduction of BVAS, which has enhanced transparency and created confidence in our electoral process. That improvement alone has been praised widely by governmental and non governmental organizations nationally and internationally.

“However, when Tinubu was declared winner, desperate elements have risen up against our democracy, insisting that the election was rigged, thereby threatening instability in the guise of protest and instigating the populace in order to truncate our democracy, simply because they cannot handle losing an election.”

According to the statement, the major opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, states had “previously ganged up their attorney generals against the election in a show of shame and an attempt to discredit our democracy,” noting that if the elections were not free, fair and credible, President Buhari would not have lost in Katsina.

“Election is won by those who have worked to earn the votes of the people not by intimidation and protest. No political party has mobilized people in the nooks and crannies of Nigeria like the APC, and no candidate among those who ran for president has invested himself in the politics of Nigeria like H.E Bola Ahmed Tinubu. This is a man who in his life history, has never lost an election. So why should we be surprised if he wins the presidency against an obviously divided opposition?

“I therefore wish to call on various stakeholders in the democratic struggle, including democratic governments all around the world, to come in defense of the Nigeria democracy. It is our duty to defend our mandate and our democracy. We cannot afford a few people who don’t want to accept a clear defeat in the elections to become a threat to the largest democracy in Africa which has survived its longest journey of 23 years. We also want to call on them to join hands with Bola Ahmed Tinubu in his effort in the renewal of hope for Nigerians.

“As young people, we are confident that H.E Bola Ahmed Tinubu will unite Nigerians and provide them equal opportunities during his term in office,” they concluded.