By Levinus Nwabughiogu

A reporter’s diary of the activities of  President-Elect Muhammadu Buhari from Abuja to Daura,  Katsina State and back to Abuja. Somehow, the planned mega rally in Abuja  on January 29  failed. It was supposed to be the ‘mother- of-all rallies’ of the All Progressives Congress, APC, before  February 14, the date initially scheduled for the presidential and National Assembly polls.

President-elect Muhammadu Buhari reviews a document in Abuja on April 1, 2015. Nigeria’s new president-elect Muhammadu Buhari hailed polls that will lead to the first democratic change of power in Africa’s most populous nation as “historic” hours after he secured a decisive victory. AFP PHOTO

But the shift in the polls dates affected it and never did anyone mention it again;  instead, town hall meetings, which appeared to be General Muhammadu Buhari’s last minute’s engagements, became inevitable. This saw him visiting many places ahead of the rescheduled March 28 elections. Activities however reached their apogee 48 hours to the presidential election. Below is an account of how the period went for Buhari.

Thursday, March 26—Last Press briefing

But just before the expiration of the 48 hours constitutional time off to the campaigns, Buhari  had time with journalists at his campaign headquarters in Central Business District, Abuja. Day was Thursday, March 26.

Calm and calculative, Buhari entered the auditorium with the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Oyegun, sat down before television cameras, microphones and tape recorders.

The conference basically featured a reiterated commitment to stamp out corruption, insecurity and unemployment.

“I specifically called this press conference to thank millions of Nigerians for their support and their enthusiastic commitment to the imperative of change. I am particularly overwhelmed that, despite the sustained smear campaigns against me by the ruling PDP, the support Nigerians have for me has remained intact. The enthusiasm of Nigerians for change is understandable”, the then APC presidential candidate said.

He added: “The 16 years of PDP administration is a story of despair, despondency, disillusionment and pervasive fear, caused by unprecedented insecurity. The basic functions of the government such as the security, welfare and happiness of the citizens appear only in paper. It is morally wrong for any government that has woefully failed in these basic responsibilities to demand or expect another mandate from the disillusioned citizens of Nigeria”.

Friday, March 27—Journey to Daura

The journey to Daura, Katsina State, home of the president-elect, was done in separate flights on Saturday, March 27, when there was a reunion of Buhari and journalists.

Saturday, March 28-Election Day

As early as  5:30 am, the day had broken and Daura was beckoning. And so, an approximately two hours drive from my Katsina hotel brought me to Daura Motel, a walking distance to Buhari’s house to meet with colleagues. Minutes later, Mallam Garba Shehu, the Director, Media and Publicity Directorate of All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Organization, APCPCO, showed up. From there, the next destination  was the polling unit 003 at Kofar Baru in Sarkin Yara “A” of Daura Local Local Area.

By  8:30 am, the INEC adhoc staff were already on  ground. The place  surged with  enthusiastic voters. Enquiries indicated that the Presiding Officer, PO, of the unit was Mr. Abbas Mohammed and  Assistant Presiding Officer 1  Abba Zaradin. Security operatives both in uniform and plain clothes were handy even as the  voters register and the card reader were also seen on display.

At exactly,  8:38 am, the motorcade of Buhari  drove in.  Amidst cheers, Buahri and his wife alighted and went through the accreditation process within five  minutes and exited the scene at exactly 8:48 am  also.

Speaking to journalists  after authenticating his PVC, the  then APC presidential candidate said the electoral system was transparent.

He said: “I like the integrity of the system. If people are allowed to vote, rigging will actually be impossible in this system. I  think they (INEC) have done very well and I have said it to my colleagues elsewhere that, from their presentation to the Council of State which I happened to be one of the members, INEC, this time, has done extremely well.”

Buhari and his wife were to make a return to the polling unit to cast their ballots  at 4:58 pm  that Saturday. This time, the crowd had tripled. Those who had done their accreditation and even voted stayed back to catch a glimpse of “Baba” on his return. And true to fact, the vicinity of the unit erupted in elongated cheers and hails upon the return of Buahri.

“Sai Baba”, Sai Buhari”, an Hausa chant meaning “only Buhari”, filled the air. To drive out from the place became a movement that was controlled by the people who danced in front of Buhari’s convoy.

At Buhari’s residence

It was almost nightfall when  journalists were called to Buhari’s house for a chat. A stage had been made  under a tree. All had seated when Buhari gracefully emerged. The briefing was not a speech thing but a chat off the scripts on virtually contemporary issues. And it went thus:

On the issue of integrity of the system

“I base it on the performance of INEC. If I could recall, I even referred to the submission by the INEC chairman of their activities from the end of the last General election in 2011 till how. I said the document was very good and even INEC said they were ready to conduct this election. So, whether I said that INEC is performing or not performing is based on the current issues. We see them documented on records. I just can’t work on rumour because if you work on rumours in Nigeria, you get missing in action.”

The cheers from the people

“The reception I received in my constituency has always been like that since April 2002. So, for you, if may be something spectacular, but it has always been a regular thing.

The electoral violence in Rivers State

“I spoke with the governor of Rivers state and I think that what has been happening in Rivers state is a continuation of the hostility between the ruling party the APC. The governor has been fighting and today, it is out of hand. I must admit that again, I am happy with the decision taken by INEC that in places where election has not taken place, it will take place tomorrow. From the information we are getting which has not been confirmed, there is failure of some of the card readers. For example, it took me less than five minutes to do accreditation. When I came back home, I was watching on Television and it took the President about 30 minutes to be accredited. But it took his wife and mother about two minutes each to do it. There is discrepancy in the performance of those gadgets. For INEC to give the notice that because of failure in some up the equipment, elections will continue tomorrow (Sunday) where elections did not happen today.”

On peace pact

“Even before the first Abuja peace accord, i have told my supporters not to be rude or take up weapon against any Nigerian. After that, we signed the first Abuja accord presided over by Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of the United Nations which we all signed as Presidential candidates and the recent one signed three days ago between me and Jonathan presided over by General Abdulsalami Abubakar, Bishop Kukah and Bishop Onaiyekon and two others. We gave assurances that we will make sure that our supporters do not become violent during and after the election. In constituencies where there is violence, it is up to the parties to make sure they set up a process of disciplining those involved. We can’t sign an agreement as leaders of our parties and  Presidential candidates and somebody down there will be doing the opposite of what we pledged and signed. That is indiscipline.”

On rumoured polls cancellation 

“How many places have hiccups? I can count only about four. In Rivers state, Enugu state, Delta. I think it is maximum of five states out of 36. Please don’t forget that there were elections in Afganistan and they have been having issues in the past 15 years. There was election in Syria and they are at war because they are still fighting. There was election in Pakistan. So, all these negative thoughts about Nigeria election shouldn’t hold because of problems in a maximum of five states.”

The interview marked the end of the Daura trip. I returned  to Abuja the day after. We were to meet again on Monday in Abuja but for the delay in the announcement of election results by INEC, it was postponed to Tuesday.

Tuesday, March 31/Wednesday, April 1: Unusual days

I had practiced journalism for some years now. I know how intellectually tasking and energy sapping it could be. But Tuesday, March 31  presented  a  dimension to this sacrifice. I didn’t know why I had to wake up at 4 am that day. May be  I was used to it. But it compounded the trouble that followed later in the day as I couldn’t get even a minute to nap off until the following day.

With the results of the presidential election trickling in, showing brighter chances for Buhari, I knew I had a task of gathering minute-by-minute reaction of  APC chieftains including Buhari. And I figured that the places they could be at the time were the  campaign office or the APC national secretariat. So, I started shuttling between both places  in Central Area and Wuse 2,  Abuja. Later we were told that Buhari would brief  journalists immediately after INEC had declared him winner. Time was given as  8pm. But it never happened until  5 am  the next day.

With this, I retired early enough to the national secretariat. While the clocked ticked  towards  8pm, it was uncertain whether the time was  feasible. Meanwhile, as early as  5 pm, a red carpet had been laid heralding Buhari presidential reception. The secretariat suddenly became agog with  the APC National Chairman,  Oyegun,  the party’s  governors, some elected National Assembly members, party supporters, those who were overtaken by the euphoria  in celebration mood. Everyone had free access into the secretariat not minding the presence of security operatives who cordoned off the streets leading to the place.

Meanwhile,  by 12 am, INEC chair, Professor Jega, was still tiding up the paper works at the International Conference Center, ICC, which served as the National Collation Center. But the crowd at the secretariat had depleted by  11 pm  when an announcement came that the ceremony would continue Wednesday by  11am after the official declaration. Time was far beyond  bed time. But the announcement was definitely not for journalists. And so, I stayed put, occasionally stealing glimpses at the television set even as sleep had taken the better part of me. I couldn’t count how many times I nodded my head answering no one in particular. The power of sleep.

At 2 am, my phone rang. It was a senior colleague from another news medium who called from the ICC to say Buhari would speak any moment from then. And we regrouped.

At  5:45 am,  Buhari, now  president-elect, his vice president-elect, Professor Yemi Osibanjo, and a horde of APC’s chieftains came into the conference room at the national secretariat to address us.

There, Buhari read his acceptance speech. It was after the speech that I left for home at  6:05am. Excerpts from the speech:

“At exactly  5:15pm this evening  President Jonathan called to congratulate me on my victory. For this I want all Nigerians to join me in congratulating and appreciating Mr President for his statesmanship.

“President Jonathan engaged in a spirited campaign and was a worthy opponent. I extend my hand of fellowship to him. I look forward to meeting him soon as we plan the transition from one administration to another. He will receive nothing but understanding, cooperation and respect from me and my team.

“The good people of Nigeria, answered the call of history. When the account of this fine moment is written, it will be said that it was the people themselves who led this nation to democracy.

“You stood in line patiently for hours in the sun, rain and then in the dark to cast your ballots. Even when the vote was extended to Sunday in some places, you still performed your civic duty. You did so peacefully. You voted with your heart. Your vote affirms that you believe Nigeria’s future can be better than what it is today.

You voted for change and now change has come.

“INEC has released the official results of the Presidential election. INEC has declared that I gained the most votes with the required spread and thus won this election. In a more profound way, it is you, Nigerians that have won. The people have shown their love for our nation and their belief in democracy.

“The declaration of INEC accurately reflects the will of the people. While there might have been some logistical obstacles and irregularities associated with the exercise, the result shall stand as what the people want.

“I thank all Nigerians who have made this day possible. Our country has now joined the community of nations that have used the ballot box to peacefully change an incumbent President in a free and fair election. To me this is indeed historic.

“Most people will welcome the result because it is the one they voted for. Others will naturally be disappointed. I ask that we all be circumspect, respectful and peaceful in times like these.

“This was a hard- fought contest. Emotions are high. We must not allow them to get the better of us. This is not the time for confrontation. This is a moment that we must begin to heal the wounds and work toward a better future. We do this first by extending a hand of friendship and reconciliation across the political divide. We hope and pray our friends in other parties reciprocate.

“I thank all the members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, for their commitment and their hard work through the formation of the party, the campaigns and the Presidential elections. Let me equally extend my appreciation to the media, Civil Society and the Security agencies for their selfless service.

“The International press and our friends abroad deserve special commendation for their support throughout the process. We promise a robust and dynamic engagement with your countries in matters of mutual interest to nations.

“In the interim, I call on all Nigerians to be law abiding and peaceful. The eyes of the world were focused on us to see if we could vote in a peaceful way and carry out a representative election in an orderly manner. You have proven to the world that we are a people who have embraced democracy and a people who seek a government by, for and of the people.

“We have put one party state behind us. You have voted for a party and president that will serve and govern but never rule over you. Change has come. A new day and a new Nigeria are upon us. The victory is yours and the glory is that of our nation – Nigeria

“I will make a more formal address to the nation tomorrow after receiving the certificate of return from INEC.”