By Isaac Asabor
If there is any resounding achievement that President Muhammadu Buhari has achieved since he came to power, it is unarguably that of bettering Nigeria‘s electoral process as it has been steadily improving since 2015. Evidence of his achievement in Nigeria’s electoral system can be seen from the fact that since 2015, the conduct of our elections continues to improve steadily. In fact, since the 2019 general election, by-elections and off-season elections in Edo, Ekiti, Anambra, and Osun states have been held in vastly improved contexts to the satisfaction and admiration of contestants and voters.
In fact, the president has for the umpteenth time assured Nigerians that his administration remains determined to ensure free, fair, and transparent elections whose result is widely accepted by the contestants.
Unfortunately, as we are fast approaching the presidential election that is scheduled to hold on February 25, 2023, less than two months from now, I believe, it is bound to remain consequential in Nigeria’s political history, and that there is an urgent need to call on governors across the 36 states of the federation to foster an enabling environment for peaceful elections and prevent election-related violence, as the country prepares to hold both the general and presidential elections in February 2023.
The reason for the foregoing cannot be farfetched as civic space, public participation, fundamental freedoms, and a violence-free environment are critical to foster inclusive engagement in the electoral process, and the exercise of political rights.
In fact, governors across the 36 states of the federation should respect and uphold the right to political participation, freedoms of assembly, association, and expression, and in the same vein respect the role of an independent judiciary in elections.
Governors and their agents, and supporters alike should always have it at the back of their minds that political tensions and violence during the campaign period as well as hate speech and incitement by candidates and their supporters have a dangerous potential to ignite or fan flames of violence.
Why is this writer raising the red flag in this context? The answer to the foregoing question cannot be farfetched as trending news reportage has it that some governors are not giving their opponents space to campaign ahead of the election. To say speak the truth to the foregoing situation, it is expedient to say that the unarguable retrogressive situation does not augur well for the prevailing democratic milieu in the country.
Against the foregoing backdrop, an instance that readily comes to mind is the one that was recently disclosed by the Labour Party (LP) chieftain, Professor Pat Utomi, who has expressed concern and worry over incessant intolerance exhibited by political gladiators ahead of the general elections, which starts next month.
Utomi, the Convener of The BIG-TENT Coalition of Political Parties, Social Movements, and Civil Society Organisation for Obi-Datti’s presidential ambition expressed his reservation at a press conference held on Friday in Lagos where he alleged that the nation’s democracy is threatened by a growing situation where opposition parties are denied public facilities to hold rallies in some states ahead of the forthcoming general elections.
Unarguably to buttress his statement, Utomi who is also a former presidential aspirant and founder of the Centre for Value in Leadership (CVL), said “The experience in Delta has been the most scandalous where even Churches and Traditional rulers described the government as so vindictive, that they could not risk allowing the opposition to use their facilities.
It will be recalled in this context that the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) about 3 months ago, following reports that state governments were trying to stifle the electioneering activities of opposition political parties and their candidates, condemned the practice, saying it was ready to penalize states where such undemocratic practices were recorded,
According to INEC, all parties participating in the 2023 general elections are free to campaign in all 36 states of the federation.
This, according to the Commission, was in tandem with the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2023 General Election campaign by political parties as provided in Section 94(1) of the Electoral Act 2022. The Commission, therefore, warned state governments not to prevent other political parties from campaigning in their domains.
