By Chimezie Godfrey
The former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Attahiru Jega, says the enhancement of electoral integrity is key to safeguarding the peoples will for democratic development and sustainability in Nigeria.
He made this assertion on Wednesday in Abuja while delivering a key note address at the TELL 20 Years of Democracy Conference 2019, tagged: “Democracy And the Rule of Law.”
According to him, “Crass lack of electoral integrity has been the name of civil rule, transitions to democratic rule, governance and development in Nigeria.
“Electoral malfeasance and malpractices have historically undermined the conduct of free, fair and credible elections, have rendered the electorate powerless and have thereby significantly eroded public trust and confidence in the electoral process.
“It is only by restoring electoral integrity into the electoral process that we can appropriately safeguard the will of the Nigerian people for democracy to thrive.”
Jega said that the Nigerian electoral process had historically been flawed and replete with profound challenges in various ways, which include inadequate legal framework for conduct of elections, insufficient funding for elections, and insufficient public sensitization and enlightenment, among others.
He stressed that it is only elections that are regularly conducted with integrity that would nurture and consolidate true representative democracy.
On the issue of insecurity, he said that Nigeria, faced with systemic security challenges, would require the deployment of all security agencies in the electoral process, but added that the roles of each security agencies have to be carefully defined.
The Chairman Board of Directors of TELL Communications, Adeniyi Lasaki revealed that a lot had happened on the sustainance of democracy in the last twenty years.
He said that Nigeria had taken false steps, stumbled and fallen when it is supposed to move with speed.
He however, expressed optimism that while Nigeria might not be cruising at the expected high speed, the hope of a better future is more alive today.
Also speaking, the Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, said that Nigerians might not have the democracy they desired, but continue to apply ethnic sentiment in the political process.
He urged Nigerians to embrace broad rather than ethnic nationalism, adding that if Nigerians do not put a stop to ethnic sentiment in its political process, the kind of democracy they are looking for, will become a ruse.
