NIGERIANS NEED PEACEFUL POLLS

Last week Tuesday, the National security adviser to the President, General Mohammed Mungono (rtd) summoned a security meeting with the 36-state governors. The meeting centred on security for the forthcoming general elections. According to the NSA, it had uncovered plans to unleash violence during the forthcoming election. It is discovered that some groups of people are hell bent to cause security breach. Although, the identity of these perpetrators remains sketchy, elections in Nigerian are usually characterized by violence. Since the inception of democratic rule, the country is yet to get her elections right. Election in Nigeria is a do-or-die affair (apology to Olusegun Obasanjo).Our politicians have failed to play the game according to the rules. Notwithstanding the peace accord signed by many candidates, the foul language being used during campaign rallies have become matter of great concern. Why do our politicians fail to embrace issue-based campaigns as practiced in most democratic countries? Must candidate attack his opponents before he sells his programmes to the electorate? Now that the national security adviser has raised the alarm of likely political violence in the forthcoming election, what is the way out? If we could recall, in the build up to 2015 general elections, there were rumours that the country would boil. It took the Abdulsalam Abubakar’s peace and reconciliation committee efforts to prevail on the contenders to accept the outcome or result of the election. Surprisingly, the former President, Goodluck Jonathan conceded defeat and congratulated Buhari who won the election. That single and sincere action exhibited by Jonathan nipped in the bud the fear of violence that might have trailed the result of the election.

Our politicians should be blamed for the security breach before, during and after elections. They have taken elections as the last battle of their survival. They hire and drug jobless youths to foment trouble during elections. To win election by hook or crook is their first agenda. With this shocking revelation coming from NSA and other security agencies, our political parties should stop accusing each other of stockpiling and arming militias. It has become pertinent to note that security of lives and property is the primary responsibility of any government. The ambition of few individuals should not override the general security and welfare of Nigerians. What about the democracy we laboured so hard to preserve? Our security agencies should work round the clock to man violence -prone areas, identify the culprits and their sponsors. Nigerians need another peaceful elections.

Ibrahim Mustapha Pambgua, Kaduna State