'I don't have a voter's card' - Sultan of Sokoto tells Jonathan

The Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar III has told President Goodluck Jonathan that he might not vote in the upcoming elections because he does not have a Permanent Voters Card (PVC).

The religious leader also urged Jonathan to ensure that no eligible citizen is disenfranchised.

“Let us respect people’s wishes; let’s not try to disenfranchise anybody. We have had issues of the Permanent Voter Cards and I want to tell you that even myself, I don’t have a PVC, so it means I will not vote on February 14,” the Sultan said.

“So, we have to look for a way out, it is for your government to now look for what to do, how to ensure that all the cards get to the voters before the voting day or in the alternative, find a way out because for any problem there is a solution. We believe you will find a solution as regard this very serious hitch facing us because millions of Nigerians seem to be heading towards disenfranchisement and they won’t be able to vote. I have heard comments from the INEC Chairman, (Prof. Attahiru Jega), but we are still waiting for our cards to come,” he added.

The Sultan also urged Jonathan to work hard to put an end to the current insecurity plaguing the country while adding that politics should focus on issues and not religion or name-calling.

“The whole politicking had been turned into either religion or ethnic matters and this should not be so because we see what happens across the world. We are worried because religion had been brought into it, we made it very clear in 2011, there is no way religion should be part of the election campaigns or even the election itself,” he said.

“On insecurity issues facing us in all parts of country, we have heard campaign promises left, right and centre but we want to hear from our political leaders, how do you intend to resolve the security issues? How do you intend to tackle unemployment? How do you intend to tackle the rot in education?” the Sultan asked.

“These are issues that should concern the various political leaders instead of mudslinging, calling each other names and whatever. We are very worried what we see in newspapers, watch on television and hear comments from our people, brothers and friends. Politics of this country has now been turned into a war, families are being divided, friends have become enemies just because of seeking for political office,” he said.

The Sultan then prayed for peaceful and fair elections and wished Jonathan well in his endeavours.