Get. Set.
The ground is set, the die is cast, and we are on our marks. In spite
of PDP’s desperate thrashing to hold on to power by ensuring that the
electoral playing field is as bumpy and uneven as possible for the
opposition parties, there are signs that the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) is trying to force the political parties
to play fair.
As Buhari, Ribadu and Shekarau – the leading presidential contestants
in the April elections deal with Emirs closing palaces to avoid their
visits, as their billboards get torn down and as their access to
public campaign venues across the country continues to be blocked, we
hear that for the first time in recent election history, our ballot
papers are ready…even though we still have no full disclosure of
candidates for the national and state assemblies. If these ballot
papers are secure and as tightly protected as something caught in the
jaws of a pit bull, then hopefully it means, ballot papers will be
distributed on schedule and verification and voting can start on time
at 8a,m. This feat by INEC – because it is an accomplishment that
despite all the hocus-pocus around the candidates who made it through
the primaries, INEC has managed to have the ballot papers printed- is
in keeping with the energy and excitement with which we, Nigerians,
are preparing for the April elections.
INEC knows, as well as we do, that a lot is at stake for these
elections. For better or for worse including the desire to manipulate
the ballots, we have had a record turn out of adults eligible to vote.
Nigerians are embracing the pillars of democracy and holding on for
dear life, we want a say in how we are governed and we want people in
office who will be accountable to us, not to political and traditional
godfathers. All we need as a safe and fair playing field where people
and parties are accountable to the same rules and procedure and where
our enforcement agencies are protect the people not the criminals.
So what are some of the things INEC is doing to level the playing field?
Last week in this column we highlighted one of the problems we could
expect during the elections: the voter verification exercise which is
supposed to be completed before voting starts. As pointed out by a
highly qualified reader: for a polling unit with 2000 registered
voters, it would take a little over 33 hours to verify all the voters
at a rate of one minute per voter. Impossible. INEC has noted this and
says voters can look forward to multiple verification points per
polling unit and they are considering the recommendation that
verification and voting happen simultaneously so that the process is
as efficient as possible. However, until we get alternative
communication from INEC, verification of voters takes place between
8am and 12 noon and voters who want to be accredited must be on the
queue for accreditation by 12 otherwise they will not be accredited.
This is very important and not enough communication is going on about
it. You cannot stroll to the polling unit at 4pm and expect to vote,
you will be told that you have missed the accreditation process and
cannot vote. There is something for concern in the guidelines on
INEC’s website which say that after the accreditation process all
accredited voters must queue up and be counted and the number of
accredited people on the line will be counted, announced loudly and
the number recorded. Does this mean if you were accredited at say 10am
and went home and maybe fell asleep and missed the ‘counting process’
that you will not be allowed to vote? I fail to see the significance
of the counting because surely the verification exercise will also be
a record of how many people were accredited to vote…if a polling unit
accredits 500 people and counts only 350 people at 12.30pm just before
voting is supposed to start does these mean only 350 ballot papers are
expected from this polling unit? This is a call on all 291 election
observers listed on INEC’s website to clarify this immediately and
share the import with us.
INEC has also announced that voters have a legal right to wait at the
polling unit after voting to see the votes counted and announced. This
is a move from the past when voters were encouraged to cast their
votes and go away. Now INEC and the election observers say it is
better for transparency if the votes in each unit are counted and
announced on the spot. That way we can all do the math together when
the ‘official’ results are announced. Since the National Orientation
Agency seems to be asleep, we have a responsibility to spread the word
everywhere – in churches, mosques, market places, salons, barbershops
because not everyone has access to or can read the papers and not
everyone will listen to the radio or watch the TV at the precise
moment when the news is being shared. Let us sacrifice a little of our
air time to share this message with those we think are most likely not
to hear it – especially those at home in the villages.
When the votes are counted, INEC’s guidelines say that the number must
of course tally with the number of voters accredited at that unit (not
the number of people counted in the line prior to the start of the
voting exercise) – if it does not i.e., if there are more ballot
papers than accredited voters, then the vote in this unit will be
nullified. All the party agents will be asked to sign the
nullification and given copies of the document. Where the vote count
corresponds to the total number accredited, the results will be
announced, recorded and party and security agents will be given copies
of the results and a copy will be posted in the polling unit.
All this is great on paper but we all know as Nigerians that our
reality is very different from what we ‘look like on paper’. On paper,
because of our vast mineral and natural resources we should be an
extremely well developed country with the infrastructure and services
to support a high standard of living…but in reality we are not. So how
do we ‘assist’ INEC during the elections to make what is on paper a
reality? Here are some things to look out for during elections.
One, watch out for the substitution of Electoral Officers and
Officials with people in the community with known political
affiliation because this is illegal according to Section 29(1) of the
2010 Electoral Act. Any person known to be politically involved in any
political party cannot act as an election official and if members of a
community see such a person acting as an official during the elections
please report it immediately. Send SMS to INEC (if they ever release
the numbers), tell a senior police officer if you are comfortable
doing so or share this information with one of the official observers
who should be at each polling unit. Political parties can send members
to observe which means to watch only but not actively verify or help
with the voting process. Do not put yourself in danger – do your
reporting discretely.
Two, it is also illegal if any local government chairperson/councilor
or commissioner interferes in the elections. These elected officials
or representatives of elected executives are not allowed to act as
party agents or do anything more than an ordinary voter on election
day. If they come there and start trying to take charge and throw
their weight around, kindly point out to an observer the illegality of
their actions under Section 45(2) of the Electoral Act and if there
are no observers, or the observers do not want to get involved –
report the matter immediately by SMS – it serves as a better record of
events than a phone call.
Three, please be generous towards the future of Nigeria and future
generations of children and grand children – bring whatever you think
the polling unit will need in the conduct of safe and fair elections.
The INEC guidelines say the polling unit officers must give copies of
Form EC 8A to party and security agents but it is safe to assume there
will be no copying machines in all 120, 000 polling booths so most
likely carbon paper will be required. Bring carbon paper. Since the
guidelines say the polling unit must stay open until the last person
on the queue has voted, then it is likely that in many centers it will
be dark before voting, counting and announcing is completed and we can
bet that PHCN and all the President’s men in the PTFP will not be able
to provide power. Please bring portable generators and diesel if the
facilities will allow for the unit to be powered in this way and if
not, please bring lots of torch lights and batteries, candles and
matches so that there are no mistakes in identifying the symbols of
the parties during the counting exercise.
INEC is doing its bit with coded ballot papers, transparent ballot
boxes and so on. But INEC can only succeed if we prove that we want it
to succeed. So ignore the naysayers who say the votes won’t count.
Believe that it can happen and it will happen. Work towards making
this belief a reality by being prepared. It is time to vote; Go.
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