I’ll continue to protest with others – 80 year-old Nasarawa woman vows
By Jennifer S. Kuwanta
Protesting women, youths and other citizens of Nasarawa State have vowed to continue with their protest until justice is done in the state.
Speaking to Journalists at the PDP secretariat Wednesday evening after the end of the protest, an 80-year-old woman, Mrs Sarah Danjuma, who is actively participating in the protests, vowed that the citizens’ protest will not be suspended until the state is liberated from the shackles of political slavery.
“Majority of us gathered here are widows, the aged women, Youths and other concerned citizens who are worried by the high spate of political slavery. We did not cast our votes in the March 18 governorship election to Abdullahi Audu Sule but for David Emmanuel Ombugadu”.
“Our protest is to appeal to the conscience of the judges for the reversal of the Appeal Court judgement, no political party is sponsoring us not even PDP. We are in the PDP secretariat in solidarity with our candidate whose mandate is being stolen,” Mrs Danjuma declared.
The 80-year-old mother who announced that they have been tasking themselves on a daily basis to transport, feed and provide for other contingencies denied insinuations that the People’s Democratic party or any other parties have hands in the protest in the state.
She called on the Appellate court to do justice to the drama that took place at the popular ‘Gayam and ‘Chiroma wards in Lafia local government during the governorship election.
“How can anyone overlook the irregularities during the March 18 governorship election under the guise of technicalities in Gayam and Chiroma wards all in Lafia Local Government Area?
“The total number of accredited voters in Gayam ward according to INEC was about13,000. Then in the result of that election, 33,000 votes were given to the APC alone by INEC. This is traumatizing, and that is the point we are making.
“Secondly, in the Chiroma ward, the number of accredited voters according to INEC record is 21,000, but INEC announced 59,000 votes solely for the APC. Who will know all these and just fold their hands in a democratic system?
“These and more are the discrepancies the court shielded and went ahead to nullify the tribunal victory of the David Ombugadu that is traumatizing us as women in Nasarawa state.
“We know what it is costing us to wake up every day to occupy the highway but it’s worth it because injustice is the greatest destroyer of any society. We can’t watch our only state grow injustice.
“We take our lives in our hands every day ignoring the danger associated with protest. Look at what the Nigerian Army did to us three days ago while on peaceful prayer as we protested. If not for God’s mercy on our side many of us would have been crushed to death.
“We have been called all kinds of names by the ruling APC that we are prostitutes. They said we are being paid to go nude. They said we are shameless and irresponsible.
“Nobody is sponsoring us, not even the PDP. Our children and relations give us money to transport to the venue of the protest. Sometimes we beg Keke drivers to help us to the venue of the protest and some of them just show us pity and carry us free or collect less money from us.
“We are happy because we are paying the price of true justice. God is seeing our suffering and He will hear our prayers. We call on the president, who is born by a woman like us to to listen to our cry for justice. The judiciary must remember that they are the last hope we have.
“They should not collect money or anything from anybody and turn white to black in the name of technicalities, one day all of us will appear before the Almighty Supreme judgement of the most high God”
The protesters appealed to Nigerians to stand up for justice, noting that the outcome of injustice is grave and devastating.
