The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described the call by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to declare its Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar as winner of Saturday’s Presidential election as an unwarranted attack on democracy and Nigerians.

Malam Lanre Issa-Onilu, the APC National Publicity Secretary in a statement on Sunday in Abuja, said the call was shameful.

“The PDP in that press statement recklessly calls on the INEC to arbitrarily its candidate, Atiku Abubakar the winner of the presidential election.

“This call is shameful and alarming; unwilling to wait for INEC, the constituted legal authority to complete its task, the PDP seeks a short cut by false and premature claims of victory, this cannot stand.

“Our nation is trying to perfect its democracy, not turn it into a mockery, sadly, this objective is lost to the PDP,” Issa-Onilu said.

He noted that because the PDP wanted the presidency so badly, it had engaged in all manner of misconduct and spared little cost to achieve its aim.

He added that the PDP now believe that it is entitled to claim victory notwithstanding the vote and will of the people.

This, Issa-Onilu added was not the way of democracy, saying that democracy meant that the people should choose for themselves not that the PDP should choose for them.

“That may have been the way in the past when they engineered and kidnapped elections to achieve their desired end not withstanding the true will of the people.

“Thankfully, those days are gone and gone forever. These elections are supposed to be democratic exercises not a platform for the PDP to impose their selfish designs on a hopeful nation,”he said.

The APC spokesman, however, advised the PDP to honour and follow the sovereign will and sober dignity of the Nigerian people.

He added that the people patiently waited the additional week for Election Day to come, noting that the vast majority of Nigerians again exercised patience as they peacefully voted on Election Day.

He further added that unfortunately, isolated incidents of violence and disruption of the exercise occurred in some places which saddened the APC.

Issa-Onilu recalled that some Nigerians died on Saturday during the election, saying that this should never had happened and should never happen again during an election of any kind in the country.

He stressed that the deaths were a needless tragedy that marred what was otherwise a celebration of Nigeria’s maturing democracy.

He added that instead of the discordant and provocative statement it released, the PDP should be appealing for peace and for INEC to diligently and thoroughly perform the vital task assigned it.