Comrd. March Oyinki
For many years to come, Nigerians and indeed the whole world will continue to reminiscence the ambiguity and contradictions that characterized the general elections in 2023 right from the get-go.
The warning signals of how this election would go started manifesting at the early stages of the presidential primary elections in May/June 2022, when INEC and indeed the Federal Government were complaisant admist the massive vote buying and monetary inducement that charade the process.
All the promises by Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the INEC Chairman that the commission will partner with the ICPC, Chairman, Bolaji Owasanoye, SAN, to prosecute party candidates who present fake educational certificates and false declarations, were empty threats, a fluke and mere rhetoric to placate those who were raising concerns about the need for investigation and proper scrutiny of party candidates.
We also saw similar promises by the electoral commission to work with the Inspector General of Police, Usman Alkali Baba CFR, to ensure that we have a violence free elections, but again, we are witnesses of the role of the Police in the recent president and governorship rlections, where the Police were seen publicly, scuttling the voting process by engaging in ballot snatching and intimidation of voters, who are presumed to be against the ruling party.
Voters were harassed, beaten, many injured and some even killed right under the watchful eyes of military operatives all across the country, with severity particularly in Lagos and Rivers States and there are ample video evidence innundating the social media space. All of which brings to question the allegiance of the security agencies, weather they are truly defending the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or they are cronies of the ruling party.
The dishonourable role that the INEC Presiding Officers played during the Presidential and governorship polls across the country did not only compromise the tenets of the INEC guidelines but contradicted the promises of President Muhammadu Buhari madebefore the 2023 election to conduct a free and fair poll.
One of the most absurd, unimaginable and incomprehensible occurences is the inexplicable and unholy alliance between INEC and community leaders at the just concluded polls, who with impunity, unilaterally relocated polling stations from the INEC originally approved points to places near their palaces where thugs were milling around and freely intimidating and assaulting voters in the presence of securty agents.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court in Lagos, on 20 February 2023, granted an injunction following an application filed by Gbadebo Rhofes-Vivour, the Labour Party governorship candidate, restraining INEC from engaging the Lagos Parks and Garages authority in the distribution of election materials and adhoc staff, a body whose Chairman is Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo, a henchman of the APC presidential candidate, Ahmed Tinubu.
This is yet another of INEC’s ubiquitous and undisguiseable show of unalloyed allegiance to the ruling party and by extension the ploy of President Mohamadu Buhari’s administration to perpetuate the reign of his party.
The BVAS device was introduced by INEC for accreditation, verification and transmission to ensure that the electoral process is credible, as contained in section 60(5) of the Electoral Act, which states that the presiding officer shall transfer the results including total number of accredited voters and the results of the ballot in a manner as prescribed by the commission.
INEC disgraced the commission by a public show of the highest level of incompetence by its presiding officers who pretentiously and by coincidence assumed ignorance of the passwords of the BVAS devices simultaneously, across the country.
Its quite appalling to find many die-hard who are purportedly highly educated and exposed that will sell their heart to the devil for a platter of portage to defend the disparaging, distasteful, spiteful and shameless innuendo of the INEC Chairman, Prof. Yakubu in the handling of the 2023 elections.
The question in the minds of all concerned Nigerians that seek for urgent answer is – will the verdict of the court truly be final and acceptable? We wait.
