Now that the Registration of Voters Exercise is over, and the next stage of the electoral practice is about to commence, citizens who labored to be registered as voters need to understand the value of their registration cards. But first, every Nigerian who registered as a voter needs to be commended and congratulated for his or her patriotism and commitment to our growing democratic process. The overwhelming turnout of people, majority of whom had to withstand much delays, frustrations and hardship, is a clear indication that our citizens believe in the democratic process, and even though many are skeptical that the elections will be free and fair, they have turned out in their millions to register to vote. INEC and those politicians who are used to subverting the will of the Nigerian electorate had better take note.
Those who have not bothered to register have also exercised their democratic rights not to register. But they should know that people who cannot bother to register and vote to elect their leaders often lose the moral basis of judging those leaders in terms of their competence or integrity. But this does not deprive them of the right to be led by competent and honest leaders. There will also be those who refused to register because they will claim that their experience has taught them that votes do not count, and that elections in Nigeria are always rigged. Such people have already defeated themselves, because they have rewarded the election riggers twice over. They have dropped out of the process of selecting leaders, and they have deprived the nation of their vigilance and anger which would have been translated into a more effective citizenry which should police the electoral process. Still, these people have a role to play. They should encourage those who are voters to go out and vote, as well as join in any lawfully process that will shield this elections from being rigged. Those who are unable to register trough no fault of theirs should wait for another opportunity, but they are still important to the electoral process.
For those who have registered, their future is in their hands. They now have the power to decide who will lead them, either by making laws or by implementing them. They have the power to settle arguments among Parties and candidates over who is better. They have powers to punish Parties who fielded weak and unpopular candidates. They have power to express their opinions on zoning and rotation, on the internal democratic process of their Party, on former Party leaders, on the use of money and grassroot support, and on religion, tribe and region. In short, those who will vote are now the most powerful group of Nigerians.
What makes them powerful, however, is their voter’s card. This card is your ballot, and your ballot is your power to speak as a citizen. It must be protected by everyone who has registered, among the most valued of our possessions. It must be protected against loss, theft or damage. Above all, it must not be sold for a small amount of money to people who will use it to rig elections. The possibility that voters’ cards will be bought and sold by citizens and merchants of voter’s cards are real. In the past, many corrupt politicians have waited until citizens register, then they move in with money, fertilizer, salt and sugar to buy these cards. They then issue them on polling days to others who then vote. This is rigging of the worst type. It involves impersonation and the denial of citizens of their rights to vote. It capitalizes on the poverty of our people to disenfranchise them, while using money to foist unpopular candidates.
Yet another method used to rig elections in advance is when politicians buy hundreds or thousands of cards from poor or unpatriotic citizens and then destroy them. They do this particularly in areas where they think their opponents are strong. On voting days, very few people are available to vote for their opponents, and they have used money once again to subvert the electoral process.
Citizens who have labored to vote must also be vigilant and speak out on polling days again under-age voters. If you have gone through a lot of hardship to register and vote for candidate and party of your choice, and yet you turn a blind eye on underage voters, it is quite possible that the politician who sponsored under-aged voters is working against your candidate and party. One man or woman one vote really does mean that only citizens who are entitled under law can vote, and all of us have only one vote. Twenty under-aged voters can make a major difference in a poling unit, and many of them in many polling-units will succeed in rigging an election.
Now that candidates will cover the length and breadth of Nigeria to solicit for our votes, it is important to remember that they will do this only because we are voters, and we can and will decide their fates. It is the card in our hands that gives us this power. Lose it or sell it, and you are a spectator in a major issue which will determine the quality our lives and the destiny of our nation.
No comments:
Post a Comment