To attain electoral conquest, some pragmatic politicians believe in deploying the voice of reason to qualify for leadership whereas others do not have confidence in their voices. They, therefore, resort to the unwanted voice of violence, the only language that speaks for them to loot victory. When success is raped in elections, the ultimate repercussion will be treasury looting on assumption of office.
Like in the past, this year’s elections were also marred by propotional brutalities and disorders across the country. They were masterminded by those who lacked optimism in their votes and their voice of pseudo reasons could not be heard and decoded by the enlightened electorate. The co-ordinated assaults were the outcome of desperation for power sponsored by self-serving politicians. The violence was mostly pronounced during governorship and state assembly elections.
On the day of the governorship election of March 18, 2023, a tragedy occurred to the family of Chiosom Lennard, who was abducted and shot dead by gunmen in Rivers state. His PhD defence was scheduled for Thursday, March 23. In Kogi state, a young man identified as Akayama was gunned down at Ayigba in Dekina local government area by thugs, who invaded the town to cart away election materials. In a general perspective, 39 persons were feared killed during the state elections across Delta, Rivers, Cross River, Niger, Akwa Ibom, Osun, Benue, Kogi, Bayelsa and other states.
What is electoral violence? Liisa Laakso defines electoral violence as an activity motivated by an attempt to affect the results of the election- either by manipulating the electoral procedures and participation or by contesting the legitimacy of the results. The United Nations understands electoral assault as a form of political violence which is often designed to influence electoral outcome and therefore the distribution of political power.
The main objective of electoral violence is thus to influence the voting process and by extension its outcome. The violence comes in many forms such as arson, assassinations, ballot box snatching, coercion, forceful disruption, shooting, thuggery and so on. These evil acts have become part and parcel of our political beliefs and character. By and large, our democracy in Nigeria is inconclusive without organising electoral violence by some reactionary pundits.
Nigeria’s elections and their sanctity have been violated by violence of varying dimensions since independence. This political upheaval has become a characteristic of our politics. It has defied measures and is on the increase, culminating in devastation of human lives and property. Most of the victims are ordinary civilians, INEC adhoc staff and security personnel.
State office is largely seen as an easy avenue for accumulating wealth and serves as the devil’s workshop for articulating electoral attacks. This sinister motive is championed by control of productive resources and domination of economic life in Nigeria. Hence, the campaign of electoral violence by desperate political elements intensifies. Unknown to the perpetrators, apart from undermining civil and political rights, electoral violence diminishes trust in democratic processes and institutions. It also lowers the quality of democracy. The violence also affects investors’ confidence and reduces the gross domestic product of the country.
It is also a feeling of dismay that electoral brutality weighs negatively on the government, which is imposed and lacks recognition of the people. It further discourages political participation of citizens in subsequent elections. The more electoral brutalities are entrenched in our voting system, the more democracy loses credibility, especially to the victims of political coercion. Resources are wasted when leaders are imposed through violence. Think about the stupendous money injected into the electoral process, only to be desecrated by the prophets of doom. The products of electoral violence might be grossly incompetent and lack the knowledge to fulfil the demands of their positions.
In a research conducted by the Human Rights Watch, International Crisis Group, African Watch, the following figures were recorded as those who lost their lives during or after elections. In 1965, there were 200 deaths. 100 Nigerians were killed in 1993, 80 lost their lives in 1999. Another 100 deaths were recorded in 2003, 300 in 2007, 800 in 2011, 100 in 2015 and 150 in 2019. It is worthy to note that the post-election violence of 2011 which claimed 800 lives lasted for three days in 12 states across the North.
It’s baffling that the notorious perpetrators of violence during elections and their sponsors are not arrested and made to face the music of their brutalities. This makes the disorder to be a recurrent phenomenon. There is an element of bomb explosion in our democracy when physical attacks are becoming a pillar of democracy. Electoral violence is an electoral coup and the architects are thieves of people’s mandate. There is no democracy to be found in violence. Every act of electoral violence brings democracy closer to military dictatorship. It is only the incompetent politician who defeats his competence through unleashing cruelty on innocent people. Instead of becoming ambassadors of peace and love, they have become agents of violence and hatred.
The proper definition of a politician who engages in electoral assault as the only means of capturing power is a political animal that does not recognise the inconveniences of violence. He does not love his country but strives to destroy it to make himself the ‘best’ by sacrificing his country to the principles and ideals of destruction for power. His democracy is destructive and not constructive. Let him know, remember and concede that election is a collective hope; it is a peaceful process; it is a democratic value; it is the legitimacy of the legitimate voter to crown a legitimate leader.
Voices, votes and violence cannot co-exist and function together to foster democracy. Voices of reason and votes are the best political elements of producing good leaders. We acknowledge them as the heroes of elections. But when electoral violence is turned into an opportunity to unleash havoc on innocent people, then democracy is infected with a dreaded disease. Elections and violence can never be the same. Elections are legitimate but violence is a criminal act which must be arrested.
Preserving the people’s confidence in democracy is dealing decisively with the perpetrators of electoral violence no matter how highly placed they are. We ought to learn a great lesson from ex- President Goodluck Jonathan, who categorically stated that his political ambition was not worth the blood of any Nigerian.
Abdullahi writes from Ringim, Jigawa state via [email protected]
