Peace In Off-season Elections

Recently, there was a viral video of the Edo state governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, allegedly issuing a warning that the state would burn if the ruling All Progressives Congress ( APC) did not allow free and fair election in the forthcoming gubernatorial poll in the state.

The state governor, through his Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Chris Nehikhare, later clarified the view and said that it was taken out of context.

Nehikhare said the governor spoke at a stakeholders meeting in Benin City, the Edo State capital and warned that: if a free and fair election is not allowed to hold sway in Edo State on September 21, 2024, it will trigger a major crisis in Nigeria.

Whether or not the governor said what was reported that he said, this newspaper is of the opinion that it is time to remind the political class that elections are the hallmark of democracy anywhere in the world.

They also serve the purpose of peaceful change in government and confer legitimacy on the instrument and personnel of governance that emerges through that process.

However, the conduct of elections in a plural society like Nigeria is often fraught with animosities and violence. For instance, a recent rally of the APC in the state witnessed a gory of violence and mayhem, resulting in the unfortunate death of a police officer and the wanton destruction of properties as well as injuries to several innocent citizens.

We recall that on June 22, this year, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had issued warnings to political parties involved in the off-cycle governorship elections in Edo and Ondo states to avoid the use of hate speech and offensive languages in their campaign

The commission also said that parties contesting the election should avoid offensive weapons and where such is part of the security arrangement, INEC and the Nigeria Police, must be informed at least 10 days before the campaign.

But despite INEC warnings, and the punishment spelt out in the Electoral Act, violence and inimical acts have continued to mar electioneering starting from when candidates clinch their party’s ticket, during campaigns, and right to the day of election.

We are not ignorant of the fact that the violence associated with elections in Nigeria tends to prevent citizens from exercising their franchise during elections, prevent credible elections and, in the long run, make the emergence of credible leaders difficult.

In our opinion, these odious fractures that have persistently marred smooth elections in the country, including violence, intimidation of voters, corruption and incompetence, ballot box-snatching, and impunity, have been allowed to thrive and fester for too long

For change to happen, there must be consequences for those who break Electoral law to send a message that defaulters will no longer be tolerated.

Just recently, the federal high court in Abuja ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to investigate cases of electoral violence, bribery, vote-buying, and conspiracy during the 2023 general election.

The judgement, in a suit, filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), was delivered following suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/583/2023.

In a statement, SERAP said the court ordered INEC to ensure the appointment of independent counsels to “investigate cases of electoral violence and other electoral offences against state governors and their deputies during the 2023 general elections”.

Meanwhile, in November last year, INEC announced that it was yet to prosecute 197 electoral offenders months after the 2023 general elections.

The commission had said it would prosecute the 215 case files handed over to it out of the 774 persons arrested for various electoral offences by the Nigeria Police Force during the 2023 polls.

In view of the recent happenings, including the landmark Supreme Court Judgement on Local Government autonomy, this newspaper reiterates it’s call for the establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission to take the “burden” of prosecuting electoral offenders off INEC.

The Electoral Reform Committee headed by a former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Mohammed Uwais, had in 2007 recommended the establishment of a special prosecution body to be known as the Electoral Offences Commission.

Although INEC is empowered by the Electoral Act to prosecute electoral offences, it lacks the power and resources to make arrests and thoroughly investigate electoral offences.
It is pertinent to point out that efforts at mitigating electoral malfeasance can only become effective with the arrest, prosecution, and sanctioning of political tyrants to end their reign of impunity.