Go out and vote tomorrow

and has also demonstrated to the international community that the country is serious in its quest to deepen democracy. One of the most important messages in the outcome of the elections is that Nigeria is capable of getting it right if the will is there and the people are desirous of defending their votes.Going by […]

and has also demonstrated to the international community that the country is serious in its quest to deepen democracy. One of the most important messages in the outcome of the elections is that Nigeria is capable of getting it right if the will is there and the people are desirous of defending their votes.
Going by the election timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the second and last leg of the elections, where voters are expected to cast ballots to choose governors and members of the state house of assembly holds tomorrow.
Though Nigeria has received deserved plaudits for its last experiment, the challenge that comes with sustaining the success is enormous but not one that cannot be overcome if the right things are done.
This should not be lost in the euphoria of the nation’s triumph over the dire predictions of doomsday peddlers.
The steps taken to consolidate on the gains made with Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999 have no doubt been confirmed with the widely acknowledged transparency of the March polls and the acceptance of results by the major players in them.
As Nigerians prepare to go to the polls again tomorrow, they must not lose sight of the importance of the exercise, which would produce governors in 29 states of the federation as well as legislators in all 36 states.
This category of officials and their functions resonate very well with the people as they are closer to the grassroots hence the zeal and excitement for participation shown across board.
There is need therefore to demonstrate to the entire world that much as candidates, parties and their supporters desire to come out successful, the organisation, the successful and peaceful manner the March elections were conducted were not  a fluke, but  the foundation of a culture that can and should be sustained.
Lessons learnt from the presidential and National Assembly polls, especially in the former in which both the winner and loser abided by the terms of the peace accord they signed, and also urged their supporters to toe the path of peace, should be sustained.
It is therefore important that those canvassing for offices in tomorrow’s elections and their supporters should conduct themselves lawfully and peacefully and should not on any occasion take the laws in their hands. In areas where they are not satisfied with either the processes or the results of the elections, they should seek redress through constitutional means provided in the Electoral Act.
The security agents should also identify areas where there were challenges in the last election and move quickly to address any breaches that could lead truncating the process, and to prevent the breakdown of law and order.
INEC officials should also strive to ensure that the level of confidence the people now have on the Commission on account of its last outing does not wane but be sustained and improved upon.
The kind of violent exhibition of victory recorded in some parts of the country should also be discouraged as this is also capable of diminishing the moral-and practical–high ground Nigeria would have stood on if such incidents are not dispensed with.
Nigerians have proved the doomsayers wrong by their comportment in the last election, even in the face of direct provocation in many cases, and this contributed to the prevailing peaceful atmosphere in the country and acknowledged worldwide. The elections tomorrow will consolidate on those gains. But to achieve every eligible voter with a permanent voter’s card should go out there to the polling where they registered and exercise their unique civic responsibility.