By Chimezie Godfrey
The Executive Director, YIAGA Africa, Sampson Itodo, has stressed the need for citizens to speak out and demand reforms for electoral process in Nigeria.
He stated this on Tuesday in Abuja, in an Interview with Journalists during a round table on,”Tackling Voter Suppression in Nigerian Elections.’
Itodo decried that recent elections in the country were marred through deployment of thugs by political gladiators, who destroyed electoral materials, thereby preventing voters from casting their votes.
He pointed out that this dangerous trend if not curbed will endanger democracy and make democracy lose its vitality, adding that it will further deepen voter apathy in the elections.
“We are witnesses to the fact that in recent elections thugs have targeted specific local government and polling units and destroyed electoral materials preventing people from casting their votes, just in a bid to suppress the voting power of a particular geographical space or a particular group.
“Now, when we deny people of their right to vote, we endanger our democracy, democracy looses it’s vitality if citizens are unable to cast their votes during elections. And so, we convene this roundtable to push this envelope, the discussion around voter supression.
“The electoral reform provides us an opportunity to strengthen our legal framework, to prevent Institutional voter suppression, because their are cases when institutions, be it state institutions, whether electoral commission or security agencies intentionally deprive people from casting their votes, you can see the level of violence during elections. In the recent Bayelsa elections based on our PVT data it was obvious that 26 percent of polling units in Bayelsa state did not have elections, but results were declared and then the winner was returned in that elections.
“If we continue to let development of this nature pervade our electoral process and what we stand to do is to further deepen voter apathy within our elections, and once people lose confidence in democracy, if people lose confidence in elections, we no longer consider ourselves that we are in a democracy, because where a small fraction of people are determining the political leadership on behalf of the vast majority, then we are no longer in a democracy,” he said.
On what YIAGA Africa will do if the government and INEC fails to yield to their recommendations, he said they are confident that recommendations from the roundtable will be adopted by relevant institutions.
“We have confidence that whatever recommendations that will come out of this round table will be adopted by these institutions, believing that they are also committed to improving our electoral process.
“We have seen demonstrable actions from different stakeholders post the elections, just last week INEC and national assembly members were in Lagos to discuss reforms in electoral amendment.
“We have seen the proposed amendment, some of them are progressive and they will help improve the quality of our electoral process, the engagement will continue.
“Citizens really need to speak out and demand reforms to our electoral process that one, strengthens our democratic institutions to deliver on their constitutional mandates, and safeguard the rights of voters.
“This round table is about the right of voters, that because I come from a particular ethnic group or a particular religion, I should not be deprived of the right of casting my vote. I am a Nigerian you are a Nigerian.
“Is a right to be protected and these institutions have a responsibility of protecting that right. So, is just pushing the envelope on this discussion.
“We have got a huge opportunity presented by the electoral reforms, obviously our electoral amendment need some review, our electoral amendment does not really provide enough safeguards for the rights of voters, they are not sufficient,” he stated.
He disclosed that they are going to advance recommendations on how to improve those safeguard, and that they hope that the National Assembly having told the public that they are committed to electoral reforms, will do so.
He however, said that in the event that the NASS fails to implement the recommendations, it simply means that it has just been all talks without no commitment to electoral reform.
“But we give them the benefit of doubt that they will adopt some recommendations coming from election observers groups and because the 2023 elections is a transitional elections and with these reforms that have been proposed it means if we mainstream them in our electoral process, it will enhance the quality of our elections.
“But honestly it is unacceptable that we only recorded 36 percent turn out for the last general elections, and 32 percent turn out in the governorship elections, if you look at Kogi and Bayelsa, look at the number of turn out, every Nigerian should be very concerned.
“Nigerians are not coming out to cast the votes because they have lost interest in the political process or the institutions that should protect their rights have shyd away from their responsibility,” he stressed.
Speaking on the absence of the security agencies at the round table, he said that despite the absence of the security agencies, YIAGA Africa will continue to engage with the security agencies citing the critical role which they play in the electoral process in the country.
“We don’t know the reasons why they are not here, we want to believe that they have their reasons, we are still expecting them to come, even if they do not come we will continue to engage with the security agencies because our reports and our analysis shows that the security agencies have been involved in assaulting voters, the right of the voters.
“We will continue to call for reforms, but there has to be accountability. Security agencies who trample on the voting rights of the citizens need to be held accountable. And we are not going to renege on that call on the security agencies,” he stressed.
