by Akan Ido

Former governor of Lagos, Bola Tinubu has warned against rigging in the upcoming governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun States fixed for June and August this year.

Tinubu who is the national leader of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) said the elections will be a “rig and roast” exercise urging voters to protect their votes.

Tinubu was speaking yesterday at his investiture as the Chancellor of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, and award of honorary Doctor of Science in Management Science.

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Apparently reacting to an earlier statement credited to the Vice President Namadi Sambo that the elections of the states would be a warfare, he said, “We are prepared not to go to court but to drive you out. We will not take it anymore. If you mess up in Ekiti and Osun states, you will see our reactions. For every action, there must be a reaction.”

Tinubu called on the electorate in the affected states and across the country to protect their votes, saying that no government that wants people’s votes to count would behave the way the the government was doing.

“They are planning to rig the elections but be ready to protect your votes. It is going to be rig and roast,” he added.

Reacting to President Goodluck Jonathan’s comments in Kano where he accused Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of mismanaging the money meant for his campaign in 2011, Tinubu asked the president where he got such huge amount of money, having said during one of his political campaigns that he had no shoe.

The APC national leader who spoke on the topic, “Two Faces of Despair: State of the Nigeria Nation,” also faulted President Jonathan’s administration on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) that government rebased recently.

“Nigeria has magically leaped over South Africa to become the largest economy in Africa. Too bad the magical statistics do not translate into a magical improvement in the people’s economic condition. While the GDP grew, the people’s wellbeing tumbles.

“The recent rebasing putting Nigeria ahead of South Africa has raised more doubts about the objectives of those in charge of economy. From a modest of $305 billion, Nigeria’s GDP ballooned to $488billion.

“The GDP mathematics is an offensive sideshow, given the real hardships Nigerians face. This is another variant of the vision 2020 gimmick and to make the government look good prior to the world economic forum meeting in Abuja next month. It is propaganda not progress,” he declared.