Editorial

As Kwarans go to the polls

 

After many months, weeks and days of political permutations and punditry, the 2019 general elections begin on Saturday, February 16 is the first batch of a two-legged process. On Saturday, Nigerians in general and Kwarans in particular will go to the poll to elect the president and National Assembly members of their choice. There are at least 91 political parties featuring in this year’s election, but not all the parties feature candidates for all the posts available. Nevertheless, there are two major political parties in this election. This can be seen on how frequently these parties’ campaign or how many members and top politicians that make up their membership list.
Incidentally, today equally marks the last official day for campaigns. This year’s campaign has been tumultuous. In some cases there have been strong anger, in others there have been violence. In Kwara state here, there have been uneasiness following spates of either intra party violence or inter party misunderstandings. In fact, there were instances of communal skirmishes. In all, there is no doubt about the keen interest that our people have shown in the electoral process. The high level interest validates the trust residents have in democracy. It is a welcome development and something that should be commended and continued.
Earlier in the process leading up to now, there have been testy times that challenged stakeholders to shape up. This is why in January the Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC for Kwara state, Malam Garba Attahiru-Madami, expressed concern over recent political violence in the state. The INEC REC spoke at an interactive session with traditional rulers in the state in Ilorin. He appealed to them to educate Kwarans on the need to maintain peace during and after the general elections. He said, “I want to appeal to royal fathers to go back to their domains and invite leaders of political parties and their supporters and talk to them about peace. We must conduct ourselves in a peaceful manner before, during and after the coming general elections.
“I am sad because our campaign in Kwara has become violent; in December, the news came to me that destruction of campaign billboards was rampant,” he said. The REC promised the people of the state of his readiness to organise free, fair and credible elections. At the end of this year’s elections, not only will the stakeholders applaud them, but the international community will adjudge the elections as the best in the country,” he added.
INEC is a critical stakeholder in the organisation of an election. They are the main stakeholder in fact, because they set all the standards. It is how they conduct themselves therefore that will determine how credible the process may turn out. It is difficult to have violence during or after election if the electoral umpire is seen to have conducted its operations in a fair manner. While calling on residents to be law abiding, it is equally important to encourage INEC staff and her adhoc staff to throw their biases aside and do justice to this one day process. It is possible.
Also security has become a major challenge. With removal and posting of police chiefs, it appears there could be schemes to give advantage to some participants in the process. We however want to believe that security operatives know that patriotism means what is just and fair. We call on them to be neutral no matter whose ox is gored. Theirs is to provide security to every Kwara resident. They are also to pay close attention to political operators who may wish to take advantage of them. They are to provide an atmosphere of calm for voters, INEC staff, observers and journalists. When peace is their motivation, they will not have major breach during or after the process.
To all intents and purposes, the elections will come and go but Kwara will remain. Therefore, it is incumbent on every resident not to allow any motive to becloud their judgment. They must not allow outsiders infiltrate the State of Harmony in a way to cause a security breach.
Every eligible voter with a permanent voter’s card is encouraged to perform their civic duty. Go out early, get accredited and vote candidates of your choice. We want a peaceful election. Let Kwara be the perfect example for the rest of the country.

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