The Peoples Democratic Party has blamed a “communication lapse ” for its candidate not being present to sign a deal with other candidates for peaceful elections.
Atiku Abubakar was a notable absentee at Tuesday ’ s ceremony in Abuja , at which President Muhammadu Buhari and dozens of other candidates vowed to ensure non-violence.
Voters would go to the polls to elect a new president and parliament on February 16 next year . Governorship and state assembly elections follow two weeks later.
The Peoples Democratic Party said Abubakar was not at the event “due to (a ) communication lapse between the National Peace Committee and our party’ s national secretariat ”.
But it added that both the party and Abubakar were “fully committed to a peaceful electoral process and elections in 2019 ”.
Abubakar , a former vice- president under Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2007 , was known as a “global ambassador of peace ” , it added in a statement issued on Tuesday night .
His spokesman earlier told AFP Abubakar was “not invited ” to the event , which was organised by the National Peace Committee . Several other candidates were also absent.
But the committee ’ s chairman , former military ruler Abdulsalami Abubakar , denied any snub and maintained : “Everybody was invited. ”
Security around polling is a recurrent concern in Nigeria, which has a history of violence stoked by identity politics, ethnicity and religion.
In 2011, some 1 , 000 people were killed after clashes between supporters of Buhari after his defeat to Goodluck Jonathan.
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