Former President Goodluck Jonathan and erstwhile chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega recently made suggestions on how to improve Nigeria’s electoral system.
As a cornerstone of any democracy, election presents us with a choice to either retain or reject a sitting government. People rejoice when it is free, fair and credible. But when it is flawed, crisis that can mar a country erupts. In Nigeria generally, elections are greatly flawed. Jonathan and Jega attributed this to politicians, the judiciary and the INEC.
We are living witnesses to what Jonathan and Jega said. The 2023 general election is a typical example. The government of Muhammadu Buhari invested a lot of resources in the election. Nigerians were told that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) was the game changer in the election. Sucked in by the assurances of a better technology, millions of people trooped out to exercise their franchise. But the majority of them were systematically disenfranchised.
Many Nigerians have also lost hope in the judiciary. Some of our courts gave judgements that relied heavily on technicality more than justice. This questioned their integrity and impartiality. Jonathan is right to say that no matter how elaborate or sophisticated the deployment of technology is, it may not deliver the desired outcomes without the proven will of the authorities and the citizens to do the right thing.
For us to move forward as a democratic nation, we must have a truly independent INEC and the judiciary as well as non-partisan security operatives. For INEC to become truly independent, the appointment of its officials should not be done by the executive.
Besides, Nigeria should learn how elections are conducted in the United States, the United Kingdom and other advanced democracies. We can also learn from some of our West African neighbours that have had credible elections in the recent past. Ghana, Liberia and Senegal are good examples. Senegal witnessed a pre-election protests and arrest of opposition politicians, but the election eventually held peacefully and freely with the opposition candidate, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, winning the election. In Ghana, opposition
candidate, John Dramani Mahama, defeated the then ruling party candidate, Mahamudu Bawumia, to return as President after the December 7, 2024 election. In Liberia, then President George Weah lost to the then opposition candidate, Joseph Boakai in 2023.
Nigeria, as a country, need a new constitution that will encourage devolution of powers and discourage the struggle by politicians to win elections at the centre at all costs.
AKEEM KAREEM
OAP
SUCCESS 105.3 FM
