By Haruna Salami
The member representing Yagba Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon Leke Abejide has said that the new Electoral Act will make 2023 general elections more credible and violence free.
According to him the electioneering process has been strengthen through Electoral Act to the benefit of Nigerians, adding, “that is why you see more credible people coming out now for elective position because they see that vote now will count.
He said “elections before now are usually rigged from collation centres, but now the election is going to be won from the polling units. The moment you vote, the results is already counting. Even you that is voting from the other side, the situation room they are seeing it. If they like they should come and scatter and take the ballot box, the results is there”.
Hon. Leke, who won his election in 2019 on the platform of African Democratic Congress, ADC said another way the process is now better the Electoral Act has already addressed the issue of cross carpeting by elected officers.
He said when they came into National Assembly in 2019 they were three in his party, ADC and today he is the only one standing as all the others have decamped.
As far as he is concerned elected officers may decamp at the end of the tenure to a bigger party if they wish, but not in the middle.
“This Electoral Act has arrested so many anomalies, especially the issues of the bivas. If you go to court before now and you said card reader didn’t work, they will say the law does not recognize it. Now, all electronic gadgets can be used during election and they can be used as evidence in the court. It’s going to be more transparent.
“Election is going to be clean and clear. It will help the masses to enjoy more because anybody in power will know that if he or she did not perform, he will not come back.
“The thugs will have less work this time. Their mode of operations is to waylay ballot boxes and when you are popular its difficult for any thug to thrive because when they look at what is on ground and see that they cannot operate, they will go quietly.
“Anybody that wants to rely on thuggery or want INEC to declare your results under durex, you are just deceiving yourself. I will advice those thugs that they should change their attitude and become reasonable otherwise the thugery will take them no where”.
Hon. Leke, who is the Chairman House Committee on Customs & Excise said “in the next tenth Assembly, you will see a lot of small parties having candidates here. Because if the big parties as a result of internal problems, throw away a popular candidate, the smaller parties will pick them and use them to win election. And when they come here, they will not be able to cross. They will remain where they are. The law has gone a bit better.
On security challenges facing the country, Hon Leke said Governor El-rufai has proffered the best solutions and it is left for the country to adopt those solutions.
“You see these states, especially Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina and Niger in the north west, El-rufai suggested that there should be a holistic and one time military operation to wipe bandits out. This is the best option. Because when you hit in one place they run to another. There will be casualties, I agree”.
On population explosion, he said except we tried to control these issue of population explosion, we will continue to have bandits.
“Except we control it now, we will not go further. Population control is one of the solutions for future and not immediate solution. The immediate one is the one El-rufai has proffered. It should be followed to the letter.
He said in terms of security management, the ruling APC government has done better than PDP. He gave the example of Kogi state, which he said is safe because “Kogi people are industrious. Even though they don’t have money, they will not like to spoil their name”.
“Insecurity is striving in Borno because they wanted it. Kano indigenes were able to deal with Boko Haram when they first came to Kano and bombs started exploding in the state capital. From my own side, your name matters, your family name must be protected. Nobody wants to be seen as being part of evil.
