INEC And The Politics Of E-Rigging: the Burden Of A Credible Election

By

Prince Charles Dickson

Jos, Plateau Nigeria

 
I have it on good source that the uprising in Maiduguri was based on orders from above; the Governor was in instructed to co-ordinate the chaos. Strong allegations, but one that has sufficient proof. All I have received is strong condemnation that the President could not have done that, come off it, he is better than that. If only we knew what level some of our leaders are willing to go… ‘Abeg’ leave matter, like the kidnappers told one of the kidnapped. Well I do not want to be drawn into a needless controversy, the essence of this information, is tied to the ongoing possibility that even if we do not see the twisting of the constitution to favour the third term apostles. There is a grand ploy to make the country ungovernable to a point where elections cannot hold. Even the opposition is falling prey by its own comments and action which may fill into the Governments’ planned script.
 
However, there is also the other side of the coin. We are all wrong, elections will hold, a year or so from now, Obasanjo would shame us all, then what are the matters arising and are there any other bu siness. Right from his reign the helmsman of the INEC has been at the center of one controversial statement or the other, if he is not confusing electoral monitors from observers. He is raking that we have no choice we must use ‘te ki no lo gi’…Fela’s version of technology…meaning ‘press it let the light come on’, press the light let the rigging get electronically compliant. Despite the best of efforts the electoral body has not proved that it is not an appendix of the Presidency.
       
The electoral body right from inception has always had disdain f or due process; first it said it would keep electronic voters’ register irrespective of what anyone thinks. Now it will go ahead with this e- voting thing whether we like it or not. The calculation being that if it takes thirty able bodied touts to rig an election manually by carrying the big ballot box it will take fewer intelligent Power Drunk Persons (PDP) smarts to tamper with Oyinbo man toy.
 
Matters arising, ordinarily why should we not be happy that our country is growing especially technologically? The e-voting method has a lot of merits, but the truth has always been a pill too bitter to swallow by our politic ians especially when their selfish end will be serviced. Before the electronic voting suggestion, we all, are witnesses to what we have been able to do with elections manually from direct rigging to indirect rigging, rigging by proxy, ballot rigging (when boxes disappears) or figure rigging as was the case in Brass, Bayelsa where Obj scored 72,000 out of 72,000 votes. Our manual systems of voting have helped us witness slides of enormous proportion in victories.
 
Like Professor Mobolaji Aluko’s termed Mr. President ‘Father Confessor’, we have seen the confessions received in private by the Sarkin of electoral misdeed s, Igwe of landslides and the only Oba of the more you see figures the less it makes sense…go ask Borishade, the Minister for Death in the air. The President himself has accepted the confessions and acted both as reverend father and forgiver; we have seen these perpetuators of electoral fraud punished with …what has become in Nigerian term ‘juicy appointments’.
 
Now we want to step up the gear. What happens when the computer crashes with the names of voters, do not mind my ignorance. Who benefits from the 33 billion Naira that would be used in procuring their toys for the 120,00 polling booths? I think that the money we are making like during Gowon’s era is actually confusing or making our leaders foolish so once more we do not know how to spend it.
   
We want to use machines made in India, but the Indians have refused to use the same machines they have recommended. If these machines have all the fantastic qualities, does not it appear funny that the so called electoral body and our executive have remained the silent and are working laboriously on passing the bill on electronic voting system even after the Senate has overwhelming got this one right by saying capital NO to the idea.
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Any other business, the drama on the Plateau has laid bare the deceit that INEC is. when it was time to recall the Speaker of the State House of Assembly INEC disobeyed every court order, h owever, it was favourably disposed to obeying a Friday evening court order on Mantu’s behalf, so sharp – sharp the recall was called off. Even if it held it was strange the exercise was going to be conducted from Nasarawa State. This Obj government is one made up of different sizes and classes of clowns. INEC suspended the exercise in obedience to the interim injunction granted Mantu by a Federal High Court sitting at Jos, but lets not be deceived this same Mantu told us in our interview that his popularity is infectious…Nigeria a nd her leaders.
 
Can INEC conduct a free and fair election, is one question most of us cannot answer in the affirmative, its complexity in prolonged election where in most cases it contradicts itself. As I was concluding this essay the third term baby had found its way into the committee report with a voice vote and they say it is the people’s wish. The PDP led arrangement is a failure and anyone that has any integrity left to protect is leaving, and we wonder whether the PDP paid and led INEC can be trusted to supervise an election in which the opposition naturally would win. Allah Help Us.