Until the electorate is given room to truly determine who should represent them, electoral violence cannot be avoided.
A State House of Assembly candidate, Prof. Lawrence Chuku of the All Progressives Congress, APC made the assertion at a multi-stakeholder forum on peaceful elections organized March 8, 2023, at Tokyu Grand Hotel.
Prof. Chuku said electoral peace cannot exist in an atmosphere where people’s rights are not respected.
“Until people’s civil choices are respected, you cannot avoid violence. People’s choices must be respected.”
Prof. Chuku who narrated how attempts were made with the connivance of police escorts to some political figures to stop the counting of votes in his Woji Ward, condemned the muzzling of opposition parties in Rivers State.
“It took the intervention of the army to get the police who had seized the ballot boxes for counting, to enable us count the votes.
“Labour Party won the election here. Labour Party was recording 800 pus votes, the APC and PDP, less than 50.
“People’s choice must be respected. Don’t rob me. Let me fail honourably,” he stated.
“People in government who want to impose themselves perpetually in power are bribing to keep in power; until resisted, it will continue. What happened on Saturday, February 25, 2023 was a rape of democracy. We must not allow it. People will protect their vote and people’s vote must count.”
According to him, there is loss of confidence in the system to the extent that opposition members find it difficult to attend even civil society organized gatherings.
“No opposition candidate would have attended. I just came because of Courage (Anyakwe). I didn’t know this gathering is for issue like this, I must tell you, I came with my people who are down stairs just in case”, he explained.
Many of the candidates from Obio/Akpor, Phalga, Onelga, Tai, Khana, Andoni LGAs, which are dubbed violence flashpoints, did not attend the programme which was to have ended with the signing of a peace accord by the contesting candidates.
The multi-stakeholder forum on peaceful elections of civil society, political party candidates, security personnel and the media held at Tokyu Grand Hotel, Stadium Road, Port Harcourt on March 8.
Interactions on the February 25 presidential elections revealed that the electoral body acted like it was programmed to fail as speakers expressed deep dissatisfaction with the failure of INEC staff to redeem its promise of free and fair election by not obeying its electoral guideline which stipulates that votes must be counted and uploaded from the polling units with the BVAS.
The general story was of poor INEC service, a compromised INEC and use of security detail by public office holders to scuttle the electoral process. Poll observers narrated the use of delay, failure to upload the results and inefficiency among the electoral officers in the field.
From security personnel present, there were promises of better service. ADC Marsan Joseph who represented the Rivers State Police Commissioner assured of better police protection explaining that there are plans to deploy police security massively to residential areas, schools and offices.
He called for messages of calm and obedience to be sent across to the people. “Talk to friends, party supporters, to be calm, obedient to INEC rules,” he charged.
DCC Dike Okparaeke of the Civil Defence and Security Commission, said efforts are being made in that sector, to make things better than what obtained on February 25.
In their messages, civil society members called on all parties to respect the electoral guidelines and conduct themselves properly bearing in mind that there is life after elections.
Dr Lyna Okara, Head, Conflict and Peaceful Resolution, NDDC called for violence free elections.
Said she, “Our heartfelt desire is to see no violence during elections. There is life after elections”.
Comrade Enefa Georgewill of the Rivers State Civil Society Coalition advised that all cannot be political leaders at once. “All cannot be political leaders. Political players are still not ready to do the needful”.
Rising from the session, Civil society activists called on INEC to save Nigeria’s democracy by plugging all the loopholes that marred the February 25 presidential election, which has made it the worst in Nigeria’s history.
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