Former Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) National Commissioner for Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye, has accused Nigeria’s political elite of attempting to weaken the power of voters through vote-buying and other electoral practices.
Okoye said the political elite appeared unwilling to allow Nigerians to freely choose their leaders, arguing that their actions threatened the credibility of elections and the people’s authority to determine election outcomes.
He made the remarks on Tuesday while speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme.
“I think that political elite in this country really do not believe in free, fair, and transparent election. They just want to buy the votes of the people. They want to replace the people as the sovereign, and it is very unfortunate,” Okoye said.
He explained that a credible election should allow citizens to vote without intimidation, coercion or any form of pressure.
Okoye also criticised political parties for lacking clear ideologies and failing to campaign on issues that matter to Nigerians. According to him, some parties appear more focused on finding ways to prevent votes from counting than presenting meaningful policies to voters.
“The mark of a free, fair and transparent election is the ability of the people to go to the polling units to cast their votes without any form of intimidation, without any form of coercion, and without any form of duress.
“But in this country, what we are now having is a situation where political parties have no ideologies, political parties are not campaigning on any issue, all they know is that on election day they will find a way of making sure that the votes of the people really do not count.”
Okoye Calls for Improved Electoral Technology
Speaking on the role of technology in elections, the former INEC commissioner called for continuous improvements to Nigeria’s electoral process and the deployment of technology whenever appropriate.
He stressed that strengthening the electoral system should remain a priority as the country works towards credible elections.
Okoye also urged the media, civil society organisations and Nigerians to pay closer attention to the activities of the political elite before, during and after elections.
“I think that what is important is for the country to keep on improving and also keep on deploying technology as at when due in our electoral process.
“But more importantly, I think the media, civil society groups and organisations, and the Nigerian people generally must focus attention on the activities of the political elite before, during and after election.”
Okoye further noted that ad hoc electoral personnel, including members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and other Nigerians recruited for election duties, play a more prominent role in conducting elections at polling units than INEC’s regular staff.
