Not Yet Uhuru For Our Electoral Process

Source: Dr. John U. Osonwa
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The Ekiti Election process has ended. Based on the available evidence, there was massive turnout of voters and little violence. That is good news.

But it has also been alleged that supporters of the major political parties in the race bought votes. There are a few videos purporting to prove that allegation in the public domain as I write this. That is not good news.

The trouble with Nigeria is that our evil geniuses never tire of inventing ways to thwart the people's will.

In the beginning they were snatching and swapping ballot boxes. By the next election cycle, they had started writing results.

By the next election they began bribing officials to announce results in their favour without proof - hoping to create the evidence for the court battle later.

By the next election they had started compromising some members of the Judiciary to make decisions that defied logic and often denied justice.

Now that votes are beginning to count in the electoral process, thanks to the efforts of INEC, they have started buying PVCs and votes. I expect the next transition will be hacking of INEC machines and cloning of PVCs to still achieve their private and pernicious agenda.

True lovers of free, fair, and transparent elections must continue to educate the masses that vote selling is tantamount to birthright selling.

Vote selling is perhaps the greatest act of shortsightedness and self-annihilation that a person can visit on themselves and on their children as well as their community.

Until we impress upon our poor and starving populace to resist vote selling, the same way they would resist poisoned food, the integrity of our electoral process will continue to be in doubt.

As we congratulate those who have won, let us not relent in our efforts to make ours a democracy founded truly on the principle of government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Long live Nigeria!👍🏽👍🏽
- Dr. John U. Osonwa