45% of registered voters invalid-INEC

Kogi/Bayelsa: Fears of voter inducement may mar elections

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The early warning signals of voter inducement and electoral violence should not be overlooked ahead of the November 16 Governorship elections in Kogi State. A recent report on the pre-election observation by YIAGA AFRICA has revealed commencement of voter inducement in both states while subsequent engagement by election stakeholders has conveyed the wrong signals.

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The chaotic end to the recent stakeholders meeting organized by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) towards ensuring a free, fair and credible governorship election is not sending the right signals ahead of the November 16 elections. It is no more news that the dramatic incident was expectedly caused by a misunderstanding between the major political parties that will be vying for the governorship seat next month. Recall that a similar incident happened in Ekiti when supporters of political parties continued to chant and sing to disrupt the entire stakeholders meeting. All efforts by INEC, traditional leaders and even security agents to calm the situation fell on deaf ears.

In what looks like an anticipatory disclaimer, INEC boss Professor Yakubu Mahmood had also confessed that Bayelsa and Kogi “are not easy states” when it comes to conducting governorship elections. However, he has also warned on the actions and utterances of political actors who were likely to militate against peaceful conduct of the November 16 governorship election in Bayelsa.

Unfortunately, the desperation and highhandedness of political parties do not seem to be abating with barely a month to the governorship elections. Political parties have in recent times continued to accuse each other of plots for violence which has been the norm in virtually every major election in Nigeria. Thus, in most cases when violence occurs, security agencies hardly find individuals responsible and most importantly, the political parties they are affiliated to. It is possible that lack of effective prosecution of electoral offenders has been the reason behind consistent violation of the electoral process.

Just like electoral violence, political parties are always in the habit of accusing each other of voter inducement before elections and vote buying on election day. This has remained a recurring issue in our elections, with hardly any prosecution for violating the electoral law regarding vote buying. This is despite the fact that pre-election previews, reports and post-election reviews on voter inducement and electoral violence were highlighted as a major Achilles heel to Nigeria’s elections.
For instance, YIAGA AFRICA, a perennial election observer group, last year released a report after the spate of vote buying during the Ekiti Governorship elections.

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