Former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission,
INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega has decried the failure of the electoral
process to entrench good governance in Africa.
Jega stated this on Thursday, November 14th at the University of
Ibadan, UI, while delivering 2019 Convocation Lecture titled, “Towards
Credible Electoral Process and Sustainable Political Systems in
Nigeria: What role for Universities”.
He said, “All over Africa, and indeed, to some extent, throughout the
developing world, the electoral process is failing to entrench good
governance and stable and sustainable democratic political systems as
a result of what can be termed as a deficit of electoral integrity”.
According to him, deeply embedded unwholesome practices, such as use
of money, violence, incumbency powers, and a range of electoral
malpractices and fraudulent activities in the electoral process
grossly undermine its utility as a vehicle for liberal democratic
development. He revealed that dominant political classes can, and
often do, hijack the electoral process through various means, to
access power for selfish and self-serving objectives, rather than for
democratic development that would satisfy the needs and aspirations of
majority of the citizens in the country.
“In virtually all cases, ritualized elections, which lack integrity
merely serve to legalize, if not ‘legitimize’, access and control of
power into executive or legislative arms of government by people
unconcerned with, or indifferent to, the requirements of sustainable
democratic development. Hence, such elections do not catalyze, nor
guarantee responsive and responsible representation and/or
governance”, he said.
Jega affirmed that studies of elections and election observation
reports generally, and on Nigeria in particular, exposed profound
evidence of persistent electoral malpractices, the enormity and
consequences of which undermined the integrity of the elections and
the democratization processes they are supposed to engender.
The electoral administrator stated that, “a situational and contextual
analysis of the electoral process in Nigeria reveals an incredible
level of electoral malpractices and thus acute deficiency in electoral
integrity, which are no doubt among the major sources/causes of
political instability, weakness and inadequacy of the governance
process and eroded legitimacy of elected government I the country”.
For the restoration and entrenching electoral integrity, Jega
advocated for continuous legal and administrative reforms, as well as
sensitization and public enlightenment, “most significantly, there is
need for all stakeholders to strengthen their constructive engagement
with the electoral process, with a view to improving, protecting and
defending its integrity.”
