But for the last-minute postponement, Nigerians would have put the presidential election behind them while looking forward to the governorship poll. The shift by six weeks was against popular expectations as the electorate had geared up for the decisive exercise.
Like a burst dam, a chain of reactions even from outside the country has followed the decision to reschedule the polls.
Indication that the polls would suffer a setback came from faraway London where the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki, addressed a gathering at Chatham House. His alibi was that the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) had not reached majority of the eligible voters.
When the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) punched holes in the argument, insisting that more than 70 per cent distribution had been achieved, a meeting of the National Council of State was summoned during which the INEC boss, Prof. Attahiru Jega, gave the assurance that the commission was ready and that the exercise would hold as planned. Then came the clincher! The service chiefs washed their hands off the process.
Their own alibi? The military is locked in the war against the Boko Haram insurgency and would not be able to provide or guarantee security at the polls.
Expectedly, the leadership of INEC got into panic mode. Prof. Jega summoned a meeting of political leaders and other stakeholders. At the end of the day, the electoral umpire succumbed to pressure and shifted the exercise by six weeks with an assurance by the security forces that the war against terror would be over within the short period to engender a secure atmosphere for the process.
However, this curious declaration was contrary to the widely publicised assurance the chiefs gave the country two weeks earlier that the exercise would hold as scheduled. It was the volte-face by the service chiefs that has heightened suspicion across the country that some anti-democratic elements are hell-bent on scuttling the process because the permutations were not in their favour and they needed to buy more time.
But the main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential flag bearer, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, spared no effort in cautioning against any further shift in election dates. He had stated: “We will not tolerate any further interference because it is unconstitutional.
INEC had played its last card. So, it is up to the government to empower the military to make sure that INEC feels secure and the constituents feel secure enough to go and vote… the federal government has to secure this country on March 28 and April 11 respectively for the election to take place. Otherwise, whatever they do thereafter is going to be unconstitutional and it is up to Nigerians to accept or reject it. Our desire for change must surpass their desperation to hold on to power at all costs.”
The United States, whose emissary in the person of John Kerry was earlier given assurances about the polls, was not left out in expressing concerns about the change of date. According to Kerry, “The United States is deeply disappointed by the decision to postpone Nigeria’s presidential election, which had been scheduled for February 14. Political interference with the Independent National Electoral Commission is unacceptable, and it is critical that the government does not use security concerns as a pretext for impeding the democratic process”.
It will be recalled that the 2011 general elections suffered a similar fate when the exercise was shifted by two weeks owing to inadequate preparation by the new leadership under Prof. Attahiru Jega but no hair was split. However, the build-up to the exercise this time around portends danger because of the apparent desperation by the ruling party to hang on to power.
The security agents also need to review their disposition towards opposition politicians as laying siege to the houses of notable opposition figures amounts to political intimidation or what is perceived in some quarters as “gunboat democracy”.