This came as the election was widely acclaimed to be poorly conducted and rigged in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate has berated the Presidential Campaign Organisation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for allegedly shopping for endorsements and begging United States President, Joe Biden, to call to congratulate the president-elect, Bola Tinubu.
SaharaReporters on Tuesday reported that world leaders including the United States President had not yet put a call across to Tinubu, who was declared of Nigeria’s February 25 presidential election.
This came as the election was widely acclaimed to be poorly conducted and rigged in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress.
In contrast to Buhari’s election victory in April 2015, Tinubu is yet to receive an official congratulation from world leaders including the US President weeks after being declared a winner.
Although for Tinubu, the US Mission in Nigeria has congratulated him. Meanwhile, the US President has not either called or issued a personal statement congratulating Nigeria's president-elect.
Few hours after the publication, APC PCC Director of New Media, Femi Fani-Kayode took asked Biden, to “pick up the phone and add his voice” in congratulating the president-elect.
“Yes, the American State Department and the American Ambassador to Nigeria both congratulated Asiwaju. For this, we are eternally grateful, and it reflects a measure of respect. However, it's time for Joe (Biden) to pick up the phone and add his voice. We are a big nation: we deserve no less,” Fani-Kayode had tweeted.
Responding in a statement, however, Atiku through his Special Assistant on Public Communication, Mr. Phrank Shaibu said Fani-Kayode’s remarks were evidence of desperation.
Shaibu described the APC chieftain’s action as appalling even as he called on Tinubu and his team to stop forcing foreign countries to recognise the “sham election conducted by INEC”.
He added, “After being the beneficiary of the worst and most fraudulent election in the history of Nigeria, Tinubu and his ilk are now running from pillar to post, begging Western powers to recognise Tinubu. This is the height of desperation.
“It is reminiscent of the Sani Abacha days where the maximum ruler tried to ingratiate himself with the West after refusing to recognise MKO Abiola as the winner of June 12 election and deciding to seize power over a people that did not want him.
“Even the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, stated expressly that Nigeria’s election was below the expectation of Nigerians. Several credible media houses locally and internationally, as well as EU observers, have all questioned the credibility of this election. Yet, Tinubu and his ilk want a stamp of approval on it? What a joke!”
Shaibu noted that even Chatham House, an independent policy institute based in London, in an analysis by one of its fellows said the February 25 presidential election showed that the Independent National Electoral Commission failed to learn new lessons.
Atiku’s aide advised Tinubu’s campaign team to save their strength for the legal challenge in the coming weeks rather than beg the US President to recognise his tainted mandate.