By Ade Olu
With utter condemnation, one recalls the chequered history of the nation’s democratic journey since reversion to civil rule in 1999. During what can best be described as the dark era, the only proof of democracy was that seats of power at all levels were occupied by people in civilian regalia. The military juntas had left the stage, but their interest in power was never hidden as their cronies and apologists were planted at the corridors of power.
It was an era of impunity when elections were rigged with reckless abandon without consequences. Thuggery, hooliganism, ballot snatching and threats to life were major characteristics of the electoral system. Apart from violent conduct of elections, electoral victories were mindlessly awarded according to the wishes of the god-fathers. Citizens were denied the right to elect their leaders in that whoever the ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party, fielded was as good as elected.
The Election Management Body received briefs from the executive and acted whatever scripts to the letter. Destinies of millions of Nigerians were handed over to charlatans, rogues and dare-devil sworn followers of the few power brokers, who maimed, destroyed and even killed to protect their pot of soup. Citizens were robbed of the right to choose their leaders as they were condemned to vote according to the whims and caprices of the powers that be. That was the foundation of voter apathy, which has become a major feature of the nation’s electoral process. Majority of registered voters stayed away from voting arenas for fear of being hurt or killed even when they were not sure that the outcome of the polls would ever reflect their choices.
At that time, every election was won by the ruling party despite parading candidates with questionable character, while aggrieved persons were dared to seek redress in court, where justice was certain to be denied. Politicians from the opposition endlessly pursued their stolen mandates as election related matters lingered for years in court. Some were only resolved at the apex court almost at the tail end of the tenure unlawfully procured. Consequently, politicians expended so much resources on ensuring favourable declaration at the poll, followed immediately by swearing-in. They thereafter deployed the state resources to pursue their court cases which were often resolved in their favour. The Judiciary was complicit as justice was for sale and highest bidders, who could afford the exorbitant bill, carried the day.
Internal party democracy had no place, hence politicians saw currying the favour of kingmakers, as the surest way of being considered for elective or appointive positions. Competence, track records, pedigrees and societal approval mattered less. Expectedly, the nation was sinking in bad leadership and poor governance as dividends of democracy were elusive. Politicians hijacked the common wealth of the state while the citizenry groaned in thick darkness. Water taps were dry with deplorable roads, dilapidated health care delivery system, pitiable education system etc as other negative consequences of leadership failure.
The political brigandage heightened until Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was elected president in 2007. Yar’Adua in his emotion-laden inaugural speech, which still resonates with the citizens, acknowledged the faulty electoral system, which brought him into office, with a commitment to reversing the trend. He was true to his promise as his short reign was characterized by some positives. He made sincere efforts towards electoral reforms but could not achieve much until sickness, which he had been battling with, took him away. His successor, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, kept his vision alive and sustained the electoral reforms.
The 2010 Electoral Act has gone through amendments to address identified inadequacies and accommodate emerging realities in the nation’s electoral system. The gains of the Act were evident in various elections won by opposition parties such as: the Alliance for Democracy, (AD), Action Congress of Nigeria, (ACN), the All Progressives Grand Alliance, (APGA), Youth Progressive Party (YPP), and even the current ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, (APC), an alliance of many political parties.
The reforms gradually removed tendencies for manipulations while the democratic disposition of President Jonathan, expressed in his now famous mantra – “my political ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian,” helped to douse the tension, which had engulfed the nation ahead of the 2015 presidential election. The PDP was sent packing and the then main opposition, the APC, took over the seat of power on May 29, same year, ending the sixteen-year political domination of the PDP. It is becoming more evident that citizens’ perception of candidates to a large extent determines their fate at the polls.
Nigerians, who, by democratic ideals, are owners of government, are gradually taking over and the Osun experience is a huge promise that hope is not lost for the nation’s democracy. The citizens, in the keenly contested poll, decided in favour of the opposition candidate. The two had locked horns in 2018 but the outcome, which is still raising dust, was declared in favour of the incumbent, who is again floored by the man, believed to have won the contest four years ago.
The cheering testimony from Osun State is attributed to the new Electoral Act, which among other provisions, legalizes electronic transfer of results from polling unit to the INEC portal. This less-cumbersome, fraud-proof process eliminates the shenanigans of the politicians who before now could manipulate election results at any stage. Nigerians in different parts of the world, could ascertain the performance of each of the candidates from information available in real time on the internet.
This is the way to go. The take home, particularly for the political elite, is the necessity of earning favourable consideration from the citizens. They must identify with the people, feel their pulses and impact positively on their lives to enjoy favourable considerations during electioneering. Power is back to the people and they will surely use it to access the dividends of democracy in the days to come.
The outcome of the Osun gubernatorial election has sent shivers up the spines of many politicians who are in the race for different elective positions in 2023. Christmas is over and the earlier they realize this, the better. Pedigree, track records and the general mood of the society are expected to dictate where the pendulum swings in 2023.
Commendations trailing the evident gains of the new Electoral Act as witnessed in Osun, reserved for President Muhammadu Buhari for giving assent to the bill after much dilly-dallying, while civil society activists and other stakeholders are extolled for sustained pressure cum advocacy which eventually procured to the presidential assent.
The citizens, who now wield such an enormous power, must be poised to responsibly exercise it in choosing the next crop of leaders for the country. They should rise above parochial considerations to elect individuals capable of restoring the lost glory of Nigeria and bring it back on the path of socio-economic recovery.
Nigeria is today the world poverty capital. It is among the countries with the ten worst inflation rates in the world and is indisputably leading the pack in several other negative statistics be it health, education, economy, development etc. All these must be reversed and the power to do these lies with the citizens. They must appreciate the gargantuan responsibility rested on their shoulders to rescue the sinking boat with their votes. If democracy has survived uninterruptedly for almost twenty-four years in Nigeria, there is greater hope for the future but at what pace and speed the lofty goals will be achieved depend on Nigerians.
Mr Ade Olu, a broadcaster sent this piece from Enugu State
