2015 election myth or reality?
GEJ the last Nigerian president?
I have always been watching the Nigerian
political scene but rarely commenting partly because I see a sea of selfish
ambitions in garbs of service to the nation but focused on looting.
Even at that, I still believed there was going to be
an election in 2015 especially with the vigor that pro Jonathan campaigners
started the preparations for the 2015 presidential election using various
groups.
I also watched as the North East slowly
slipped a town at a time into absolute anarchy; when boko haram campaigned
picked up after the death of President Musa Yaradua, I watched as stuffs we
hear happening in far away countries started happening here. I naively believed
a Nigerian could never be a suicide bomber it was the Arabs who could do such
things until I started hearing of bomb blasts all over the north east and Abuja.
When it turned into a war, I had so much
confidence in our soldiers to rout out these insurgents going by their track
record of stopping the war in Liberia and Sierra Leone. I believed the army
just didn't want to appear brutal but alas I was wrong!
Instead, the blame game started; as people
died the politicians played the deaths for maximum political gains. The religious bodies were not left out each
group pointing accusing finger whilst ardent of all faiths got slaughtered.
Through this entire macabre din, the
electoral dance began, not like it ever stopped but it picked up in tempo going
higher daily. Then reached a crescendo
with the NASS brouhaha at which point I stopped! And viewed the whole system
with my macroscope and realized, it looks like we are all just being taken for
a huge ride, a long con; there can’t possibly be an actual plan for any
presidential election to take place in 2015! Not with all these signs
Let’s go back to the days of SDP and NRC in
which baba Maradona himself Gen IBB took us all on a merry go round of a
phantom transition to civil rule.
I remember he first said people should form
their parties which they did, after awhile he found an excuse, created two
parties, drew up manifestos for both, built party offices throughout the
country, organised primaries, there were even debates on national TV which
culminated in the freest and fairest election in the history of Nigeria and a
Yoruba man defeated Alhaji Tofa in his own state in the north!
Chief Abiola emerged the winner after 7
years of the long con only to die in prison because Gen. Babangida was actually taking
us all on a ride! He planned for all to fail wasting resources to sell us that
illusion.
Through this long ride, Chief Gani Fawehinmi
was the lone voice who insisted and fought right from the start of the phantom
transition saying Gen Gen. Babangida had no plans to leave power.
Ever since the aftermat1h of June 12, I
haven’t seen Nigeria this tensed up over elections with the major opposition
party threatening fire and brimstone and the ruling party using federal might
it almost borders on impunity.
Do you see signs President Jonathan may have
no plans for any presidential election holding in 2015 or is it just me reading
meanings into this cacophony?
1. 1. Insurgency in the NE. The
government body language towards the wanton bloodshed has been disappointing.
Reports constantly stream out that soldiers are given orders to stand down when
these insurgents invade. At other times soldiers lead the vanguard of people
fleeing! We also get reports of soldiers ordered to leave areas hours before
boko haram fighters strike! We also hear of poor motivation of our soldiers
which means these men aren’t paid enough to encourage them put their life on
the line despite the billions of dollars gone down the prosecution of this war.
We can divide that body
language into two, that of the federal government and the state governments own. The state
governments resisted the imposition of a state of emergency in their states to
combat the threat early on, this I construed to be succinct support for the
insurgents, even at a time, notable Nigerians called for amnesty and
integration of these killers into the society, now we are all wiser.
The federal government on her own showed a government doing just barely enough to contain the insurgency leaving
the area perpetually under siege. How will elections be conducted in these
areas when a war is ongoing there?
Some will argue that the
CIC effort is being sabotaged and say President Jonathan is weak, but his response
when it comes to political affronts paints a totally different picture!
His political foes have so
many bruises to show for their affronts, states brought down to their knees,
titan governors forced out of PDP, of recent the violation of our hallowed
NASS!
He possibly can’t be weak
and strong at the same time which means whatever he is doing is by design!
So, Is there a design to keep Nigeria in a perpetual state of war and uncertainty which will make it impracticable to hold elections?
See section 135 of the
Nigerian constitution with focus on sub section 3.
135.
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, a person shall
hold the office of President until -
(a)
when his successor in office takes the oath of that office;
(b)
he dies whilst holding such office; or
(c)
the date when his resignation from office takes effect;
or
(d)
he otherwise ceases to hold office in accordance with the provisions of this
Constitution.
(2)
Subject to the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, the President
shall vacate his office at the expiration of a period of four years commencing
from the date, when -
(a)
in the case of a person first elected as President under this Constitution, he
took the Oath of Allegiance and the oath of office; and
(b)
in any other case, the person last elected to that office under this
Constitution took the Oath of Allegiance and oath of office or would, but for
his death, have taken such Oaths.
(3)
If the Federation is at war in which the territory of Nigeria is physically
involved and the President considers that it is not practicable to hold
elections, the National Assembly may by resolution extend the period of four
years mentioned in subsection (2) of this section from time to time; but no
such extension shall exceed a period of six months at any one time.
2. 2. INEC distribution of the permanent
voter’s card. Despite the tens of billions of naira gone down the coffers of INEC, the
distribution of the PVC which is supposed to be used for elections just weeks
from now has been dismal. Blurred pictures, myriads of complaint, slow
distribution, lost data! So who will vote when more than half of registered
voters can’t vote because they don’t have their voter’s card?
Yet within the next few weeks
we are supposed to hit the polls, remember the constitution stipulates elections
must be held between 60days to a minimum of 30days before hand over. And all those registered to vote..., shall be entitled to vote.. (see sub section 5 of section 132 below)
See section 132 of the
Nigerian constitution below
“132.
(1) An election to the office of President shall be held on a date
to be appointed by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
(2)
An election to the said office shall be held on a date not earlier than sixty
days and not later than thirty days before the expiration of the term of office
of the last holder of that office.
(3)
Where in an election to the office of President one of the two or more
candidates nominated for the election is the only candidate after the close of
nomination, by reason of the disqualification, withdrawal, incapacitation,
disappearance or death of the other candidates, the Independent National
Electoral Commission shall extend the time for nomination.
(4)
For the purpose of an election to the office of President, the whole of the
Federation shall be regarded as one constituency.
(5)
Every person who is registered to vote at an election of a member of a
legislative house shall be entitled to vote at an election to the office of
President.”
To be continued
