Nuhu Ribadu, former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has said there is no crime in foreigners joining political campaigns in Nigeria.
Mr Ribadu, a governorship candidate of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), stated this on Friday while addressing newsmen in Abuja at a one day workshop organised by the party’s Presidential Campaign Council for its canvassers.
The APC candidate was reacting to the condemnation that greeted the party’s presidential rally in Kano on Thursday which had two state governors from Chad in attendance. The event had President Muhammadu Buhari, who is seeking a second term in office, in attendance.
Those who condemned the attendance of the governors said they ought to be in their country and not come to side any party in the Nigeria. They also alleged that it was another plot by the ruling party to rig the forthcoming general election.
“For your information, it is a free world and it is the constitutional right of everyone to be where he wants to be,” Ribadu said.
“You have no right to curtail anybody from doing what he wants to do. People from West Africa are free to move into Nigeria.
“We have a protocol or agreement that they don’t need a visa to come into this country. I know for sure that they don’t have the vote but as a free West African who believe that someone has done extremely very well, and decided to identify himself with what he believes in, I don’t think there is anything wrong and I don’t think there is any crime committed.
“You cannot and you have no right as a Nigerian to stop them from exercising their fundamental right to identify with his friends.
“Their presence may or may not have any impact on the re-election but they are entitle to it. We have to guarantee their freedom because their presence is within the law and we don’t have right to stop them,” the governorship candidate said.
While addressing the canvassers who came from from all the 36 states of the federation for the training, Ribadu told the gathering the need to join hands together to rescue Nigeria and refuse to go back to the era it was before Buhari came in.
