Nigerian electorate and credible elections

There are various actors and stakeholders in the electoral process. They are the Election Management Bodies (in Nigeria, we have two of them; namely, the Independent National Electoral Commission and State Independent Electoral Commissions), political parties and contestants, the media, the judiciary, the security agencies, the legislative assemblies, the accredited observers and the electorate. The EMBs are the umpires who are saddled with the responsibilities of orgnising, conducting and supervising the electoral process; the political parties field the players for the umpire. They produce and sponsor the contestants better known as candidates. The media educates the public on the activities of all the actors and stakeholders.

The legislative assemblies produce the legal framework for the conduct of the elections, the judiciary adjudicates on election disputes, and the security agencies help to secure the electoral environment for the smooth conduct of the polls while the accredited observers just like accredited party agents ensures that the umpire and the contestants follow strictly the rules of engagement. However, the chief of them all is the electorate. They are all the people in a country or area who are entitled to vote in an election. Best of preparations by every other stakeholders devoid of the electorate otherwise known as voters makes the entire exercise a nullity. Without the electorate there will be no voting, sorting, counting, collation, announcement of results and the declaration of winners.

The electorate are the real ‘kingmakers’. They choose who will govern them at different levels. They enthrone the presidents and the governors, the Local Government Chairmen and councilors, the Senators, House of Representative members and members of the State Houses of Assembly. The Universal Adult Suffrage states that citizens of a country have a right to vote for their leaders. In Nigeria, for you to be among the elite guard called electorate, you must satisfy five conditions.

According to section 12 (1) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) “A person shall be qualified to be registered as a voter if such a person – (a) is a citizen of Nigeria; (b) has attained the age of 18 years; (c) is ordinarily resident, works in, originates from the Local Government Area Council, or Ward, covered by the registration centre; (d) presents himself to the Registration Officer of the Commission  for registration as a voter; and (e) is not subject to any legal incapacity to vote under any law, rule or regulation in force in Nigeria.”

There is a reason as to why not everybody is qualified to be part of the electorate. The age limit of 18 years and above is to ensure that only people who are mature enough to make informed choices at elections are entrusted with that vital responsibility. This is because wrong choice of leaders at elections will impact negatively on quality of governance. That is why underage registration and voting is not allowed.

How has Nigerians fared in the performance of this sacred responsibility of electing good leaders? Not very well, I must say. Many compatriots have been apathetic to elections. Many do not bother to register as a voter. No matter the level of awareness campaign, they are simply indifferent. There is another category of people who took time off to register but never bother to go and collect their voters’ cards. According to the Independent National Electoral Commission, as of March 2018, there are approximately eight million uncollected Permanent Voters Cards nationwide. Just last Monday, May 21, 2018, INEC commenced distribution of additional four million PVCs of those who had registered in the ongoing Continuous Voters Registration Exercise between April and December 2017. That makes it a whopping 12 million PVCs awaiting collection by Nigerians. This is worrisome. It is, because registration and collection of PVC are free unlike when one applies for Banks Debit Cards or Driving License which attract fees.

Another group of electorate are those who collect their voters cards but do not show up to cast their ballot at elections. They often claim that their reason for collecting their Voters Cards is to enable them use it as means of identification at banks, at airports when flying domestic routes, and generally when transacting business that necessitates personal identification.  This set of people care less about who wins or lose at elections. As far as they are concerned with or without their vote, winners will emerge.

Another category of electorate are those who register, collect their voters cards and troop out to vote at elections. This class can be bifurcated into two. There are those who vote because they have been induced with money or gifts and there are those who vote as a patriotic duty and civic responsibility. Quite unfortunately, people in this category are in the minority. Elections in Nigeria are witnessing less and less voters turnout. In some grave cases there are less than 10 per cent voters’ participation. There are several reasons adduced for this poor voters response at elections. Some of them include perceived poor performance by political office holders in terms of non-delivery on their previous campaign promises, fear of violence, late commencement of voting by the Election Management Body, and previous incidences of electoral fraud when votes do not count.

Ahead of the July 14 and September 22, 2018 Ekiti and Osun gubernatorial elections as well as the February/March 2019 general election, all hands must be on deck to boost voters confidence in the electoral process, encourage them to turn up to register during the ongoing Continuous Voters Registration Exercise and then vote when time comes. Election without voters can never be ascribed as successful and credible. Election in Nigeria should cease to be mere hollow ritual. The electorate need to understand the import of their participation in the process.

Yes, it is the right of every 18 years and above who meet the prescribed criteria to register to vote; it is also the responsibilities of those who have been registered to go and collect their voters cards and make sure they vote responsibly at upcoming elections. Lamentations and agonising about the state of the nation is unhelpful and serve no useful purpose. Electorate must put their money where their mouth is by joining the forces of change. They must show interest in the electoral process by following through from party primaries, through campaigns and ultimately at the elections. Nigerian electorate, change begins with you!

Follow me on twitter  @jideojong