President denies Kukah’s claim that Tinubu did not sign 2023 election peace deal

The Nigerian Presidency has been quick to respond to a statement by the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, Matthew Kukah, that President Bola Tinubu refused to sign a peace deal during the 2023 presidential elections.

Kukah made the remarks on Sunday at an Edo election security town hall meeting in Benin, sparking controversy.

“What is also very interesting is that the current president, when he was still a presidential candidate, did not sign it. It is not our fault that the political opposition did not take advantage of it,” Kukah said.

However, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, quickly denied Kukah’s claims via his X account on Tuesday.

“Contrary to Bishop Kukah’s claims, President Tinubu signed two peace agreements before his election in 2023,” Onanuga said.

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According to Onanuga, the first peace agreement, which commits candidates to free and credible elections, was signed on September 29, 2022.

Notably, Vice President Kashim Shettima represented Tinubu at the signing. The second agreement, signed on February 23, 2023, focused on accepting the election results, and Tinubu personally signed it.

Ahead of the February 25 presidential election, candidates gathered at the Abuja International Conference Centre to sign a peace pact.

Prominent attendees included Peter Obi of the Labour Party, Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, and Omoyele Sowore of the African Action Congress.

Although Tinubu was abroad in the UK at the time of the first signing, he was present at the second agreement.

Presidency refutes Kukah’s claim that Tinubu did not sign 2023 election peace deal first appeared on Latest Nigeria News | Top Stories from Ripples Nigeria.