X-raying INEC and its critics
The anti-democratic elements whose desire it is to tar-brush INEC , deliberately ignored the numerous hurdles that had been placed in its path in the course of its preparations and eventual delivery of this election: such hurdles which come across as desperate attempts which had been consistently made by some members of the political class […]
The anti-democratic elements whose desire it is to tar-brush INEC , deliberately ignored the numerous hurdles that had been placed in its path in the course of its preparations and eventual delivery of this election: such hurdles which come across as desperate attempts which had been consistently made by some members of the political class in Anambra to compromise the integrity of the election but which were effectively foiled by the combined efforts of INEC and the security agencies.
So much capital has also been made of the few complaints regarding the reported late commencement of polling in some few places , as well as the observed hitches in the Voters’ Register.
Refreshingly, INEC, the main object of these misplaced criticisms, has chosen not to react petulantly to these misplaced attacks. It is this mature posture of the elections management body that has spurred me to author this reaction.
It would be recalled that the INEC Chairman, Professor Maurice Iwu, while speaking recently during a meeting with media executives in Abuja, acknowledged (as a patriotic leader would), the phenomenon of some drawbacks that attended the election by expressing the Commission’s genuine sympathy for those voters whose names could not be found on the voters’ roll. He was however quick to say emphatically that some of the problems experienced during the governorship election were self-inflicted, saying some prominent citizens of Anambra state who masterminded this show of shame must be bold enough to accept culpability.
The INEC Chairman made specific mention of the large quantum of electoral data which the Commission had lost to arsonists in the aftermath of the 2007 Gubernatorial Election in Anambra State.
According to him, four of INEC Area Offices, located in Onitsha North, Nnewi South, Awka South and Orumba North Local Government Areas of the State were razed by irate youths who had been armed to teeth by some desperate actors in these elections.
The most unpleasant consequence of this development, Iwu lamented, was the large scale weeding out from the register of fictitious names or double registrations, using Automatic finger print identification system- AFIS. Those whose names were weeded out, he further explained, were in one way or the other, guilty of this illegality. It was also against this backdrop that some prominent politicians, who might have been doubly registered by proxy, could not find their names on the register, the INEC boss explained. He therefore dismissed the view to the effect that INEC was not able to “deliver to Anambra voters foolproof voters register”, saying this argument cannot be sustained.
Agreed, INEC is a factor out of the so many others that drive the electoral process. However, the political parties, the security agencies and the electorate are also critical.
Regrettably too, there were many others who sold their voters’ cards to politicians as was variously reported by the police high command in the lead up to the poll. No body can tell exactly the number of cards bought but the reported low voter turn-out, when viewed against the backdrop of these hugely antithetical developments, should communicate something sinister and damaging about the extent to which this nefarious activity was visited on the people. Until we get the exact data of the number of cards lost as consequence of this development, it may not be exactly correct to take the blame to the door steps of the Independent National Electoral Commission.
This apart, the reported low voter turn-out in the governorship election, experience has shown, is reflective of a pattern which, ineluctably, has been the character of the most recent elections held in this state. According to INEC leadership, sixteen point thirty -three (16.33 per cent) was indeed a very low turn-out but the Anambra South Senatorial bye-election which was held last year, witnessed a far lower turn- out of 12.05 per cent. Ditto, Nnewi North/South Federal Constituency seat election which Professor Iwu said recorded a miserable 12.53 per cent turn-out. He also disclosed that only 32 per cent of the total registered population of 1.84 million collected their permanent voters’ cards. This fact too should communicate instructively what contributed to the low voter turn-out during this governorship election.
It should, however be noted that in a democracy, the minority has their say but the majority certainly have their way. While we may concede to INEC’s few critics their right to say what they are pathologically fixated to, it bears stating the fact that such minority opinion carries very little or no weight. It only betrays the desperation of the Commission’s traducers who appear to be defeated or angered by her impressive outing in Anambra state.
According to this minority of incredibly vocal critics, the question of the Anambra election being a window to the 2011 general elections should not arise at all. If anything, the election should be assessed as “another practical demonstration of what is wrong with our electoral system, of how the debilitating problem that refereeing poses to the march of democracy in Nigeria is yet to be efficiently addressed”. Ironically, it was this same tribe of self-anointed and all-knowing Nigerians who had prophesized that Anambra would be the biblical doomsday, signaling the end of our young democracy. They have been proved wrong and this explains why we should have every cause to celebrate the impressive Anambra outing.
Mbaya writes from Wuse Zone 4, Abuja, FCT