Barrister Fabian Awhen
The distribution of elective positions, the world over in all democratic settings is through credible and participatory elections.
Accordingly, the holding of elections creditably constitutes the bedrock of a democratic system and to achieve this, requires a good starting point.
Invariably, it is this good starting point that Nigerians and indeed stakeholders in our polity are craving.
In nineteen forty-seven, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill said “democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.
Sixty years later, millions in Africa and other regions of the developing world, argue that democracy has failed them so badly that Churchill’s maxim is simply not good enough.
Notably in poor societies with weak institutions, electoral democracy is being called into question because it is no longer used to determine the popular wishes of the people despite the spread of multiparty democracy as is the case in Nigeria.
Indeed, today elections in many parts of Nigeria are permanent fixtures, a marked departure from what it should be in a true democracy.
Yet elections in Nigeria and indeed all other African countries are always worth the risk as there are no sure alternatives.
Nonetheless, the country is on a democratic journey, much like the United States was centuries ago.
For this journey to be successful, the Nigerian nation-state needs leaders with integrity and ingenuity, leaders who emphasize service as their purpose, courage as their defining characteristic, and above all patriotism as their impetus.
As it were, Nigeria has had various electoral experiences and models most pronounced being option A-4 which allowed voters to queue behind the candidates of their choice and the counting done at the polling centres yet it was marred by fraud.
What else do Nigerians deserve?
We talk of a biometric electronic system perhaps the model adopted in some advanced democracies with a centralized computer system to forestall multiple registration and voting, but are we prepared to play the game according to the rules?
These and more are the multiple-choice questions confronting Nigeria as we call for electoral reforms in the country.
In a democracy, anywhere in the world, the electorate must always
drive issues and political debate and never surrender to politicians or a political class.
This point needs not be over-emphasized.
Therefore, whatever reform Nigeria envisages including what has been done by the Justice Uwais Commission must be tailored to emphasize how better to position the electorate at the centre stage.
Civil society and the private sector are crucial to this, particularly in rural communities where the majority of citizens live.
To draw from the works of Fred Oladeinde, a development economist in Africa, and Humphrey Hawksley, a Foreign Correspondent for the BBC in his new book “Democracy Kills”, political parties – the factory that produces candidates for elected offices – must always be held accountable to their constitutional mandates.
This should not only be our starting point, but the desire for freedom, liberty, and prosperity must be foremost in the nation’s political endeavours.
All said, we should not because of the bumps along the road in ensuring democratic continuity abandon what is good for the Nigerian nation.
The time for the electoral reforms is now.
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