 Published
June 7th, 2010
The acceptance speech read by Dr. Goodluck Jonathan shortly
after taking oath of allegiance as President and Commander –
In Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria
sequel to the death of President Umar Musa Yar’Adua has
raised the hope of an average Nigerian about the future of
our democracy. In fact, the speech assures that the new
administration of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan would be totally
committed to the process of good governance, electoral
reform and the fight against corruption would be pursued
with greater vigour under the new dispensation. In lending
credence to his political reform agenda, President Goodluck
Jonathan has promised to enshrine the best standards in the
nation’s democratic practice by ensuring that all votes
counts and are counted in the upcoming general elections.
Jonathan;s inaugural speech as the Nigeria fourth executive
President portrays him as a leader being sensitive to the
people’s yearning for a better electoral process, even
though he was equally a product and beneficiary of 2007 sham
elections, the outcome of which necessitated the call for a
genuine electoral reform.
With Maurice Iwu’s relief as the INEC chair, President
Jonathan has created an impression that he is serious in his
efforts to enthrone an enduring political reform. The
problem with our political system is however beyond Maurice
Iwu. Now that Iwu has taken a final bow as the nation’s
chief electoral umpire, the verdict of history on his tenure
is that is the most unpopular INEC chair to date, in the
annals of Nigeria political system.
As the 2011 is beckoning, the question that agitates mind is
that what should be the qualities that the would be INEC
chairman should possess. In my own view, the next INEC chair
must be a person of integrity and honour. As Dr. Jonathan
searches for Iwu’s replacement, he needs to consult widely
to be able to make a wise choice. Indeed, his choice of INEC
chair will determine, to a large extent, whether or not the
next year’s elections will be free and fair.
The electoral umpire Nigeria deserves, in our match to
genuine democracy, is a person who can serve as credible,
fearless, impartial and independent chief Electoral Officer
irrespective of his gender, religion and ethnicity. More
importantly is the challenge of institutional dysfunctioning
which is a bane of the nation’s democratic process. Of
course, Iwu’s score card shows fundamental flaws in our
electoral system and it attracts attention to failures of
the nation’s political institutions.
Obviously, a panacea to the inherent contradictions in our
political system is full implementation of report of Justice
Muhammed Iuwaiz political Reform Committee which is yet to
be passed by the National Assembly. Unfortunately, the
crises of values and method which currently confronting our
political process has become aggravated by the institutional
dysfunction of the nation’s electoral system. Similarly, the
present structure of INEC remains an object of criticism,
for it has been considered incapable of guaranteeing
successful national election. Without doubts, any reform of
the electoral process which does not find a way to
strengthen the political institutions, ensures compliance
with letter and spirit of the constitution and satisfies the
provisions of the nation’s Electoral Act will not only be a
ruse but unrealizable. The danger inherent in the structure
and colouration of the current political system is of
corrosive dimensions. Apart from the challenge of
institutional dysfunction that is plaguing our political
system, violence which is often being employed by the
political elite has become a strategy to gain upper hands
during elections contrary to the tenets of democracy.
Also, we should be worried about the character and
orientation of INEC in its present shape, the body seems to
be more interested in contract awards than conducting
credible polls. With the nation’s past political
experiences, the call for urgent unbundling of INEC becomes
imperative as this would guarantee efficiency of the
nation’s electoral body. There is also the need for more
emphasis on training and retraining of the INEC officials to
increase their capacity development opportunities.
Again, there could be no meaningful electoral reform without
addressing the contribution of the police to the electoral
woos of the nation. Quite often, the police had virtually
become an instrument with which the ruling party manipulate,
subvert and undermine the electoral system. Predictably, the
possibility of recording credible election come 2011 is low
except the roles of the police during elections are
re-defined and their men are re-directed towards a more
positive roles. Right political socialization, attitude and
behaviour as enviable norms need to be given due attention
as ingredients of sound political education for the citizens
in charting the course for a better electoral system for the
nation.
The widely reported unauthorized 2.8 billion withdrawn from
INEC’S account few days after Iwu has been asked to proceed
on terminal leave needs to be carefully investigated and the
Commission’s Finances between 2005 to 2010, the period
during which Iwu was in charge of the nation’s electoral
body equally need rigorous audit.
ONIKE RAHAMAN
PUBLIC AFFAIRS ANALYST
CELE AREA, OYO TOWN , OYO STATE . |
