Saturday, September 10, 2016 was the appointed date for the conduct of the Edo State of Nigeria gubernatorial election and the stage was indeed set for the process to elect a new Governor that will succeed the incumbent, Adams Oshiomhole. Few days to the election there were indications that the election might be postponed. The clear basis for the postponement was that the General Certificate of Education, GCE Mathematics examination slated for the same day the election was to be conducted. Since such examination is usually administered at the same time nationwide one of the two events must give way to the other.
While the palpable dilemma was lurking, a new dimension crept in at the nick of time. Security agencies called for the postponement of the election on the grounds that security might be breached in Edo State on that day. Initially, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC won’t accept any suggestion that the election should be postponed. At last, the Commission buckled. It suddenly announced Saturday, September 28, 2016 as the new date for the election.
As a well-known Nigerian expression goes, ‘come and see’ how brickbats were flying over INEC’s announcement! Stakeholders took positions. The camp of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP representing the opposition said it was a ploy by the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, APC to delay the inevitable defeat it faced in the election. APC promptly accused PDP of trivializing the warning of security threats posted in unison by all the security agencies in the country.
The bickering that followed the postponed reechoed the rancour that marked the postponement of Nigeria’s general elections in 2015 by the electoral commission. The Presidential and National Assembly elections were scheduled for February 14, 2015 while the gubernatorial and state house of assembly elections were to be held on February 28, 2015. At that time, threats to the country’s security were cited as the reason for the postponement of the general elections. INEC grudgingly postponed the election to March 28, 2015 and April 11, 2015 respectively. The then INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega said at a news conference where he announced the new dates for those elections that although the electoral commission had prepared fully to conduct the elections as scheduled, it could not ignore the advice it received from the country’s security chiefs that disruptions of the electoral process were imminent.
Professor Jega said: “INEC not being a security agency that could by itself guarantee protection for personnel and materials, as well as voters during elections, the Commission cannot lightly wave off the advice by the nation’s Security Chiefs. The Commission is specifically concerned about the security of our ad hoc staff who constitute at least 600,000 young men and women, together with our regular staff, voters, election observers as well as election materials painstakingly acquired over the last one and half years.”
He went on, “No matter the extent of INEC’s preparedness, therefore, if the security of personnel, voters, election observers and election materials cannot be guaranteed, the life of innocent young men and women as well as prospects of free, fair, credible and peaceful elections would be greatly jeopardized.”
On that occasion, APC took the position that the election was being postponed to enable the incumbent President, Goodluck Jonathan to get some breather to reorganize and energize his campaign as APC was poised for victory if the elections were to take place as earlier determined by INEC. Of course, PDP stalwarts responded by defending the postponement as a necessity that was not subject to partisan assessments. A cursory survey by election watchers said at the time that 18 out of 27 political parties in the country supported the postponement.
In the current situation in Edo State, the shoe has moved to the other foot: hence the exchange of positions taken on the postponement by the two parties, PDP and APC.
Those who claimed to be neutral in the ensuing controversy said that the GCE examination was sacrosanct while there was still room for the gubernatorial election to hold. Given the fact that movement of persons is usually restricted on a typical election day in Nigeria, conducting the examinations in Edo State on the day of the election would have posed difficult logistic issues. They argued.
After all is said and done, the election is a straight fight between PDP’s candidate, Osagie Ise-Iyamu and APC’s Godwin Obaseki. Pundits are at work because given the backgrounds of the two principal candidates and hoping that the election will be free, fair and credible, the margin of victory may be narrower than many are predicting. In the final analysis, INEC will be expected to fix realistic time-tables for conduct of elections and security agencies should be at pains before posting warning of security threats. The possibility of shifting election dates for whatever reason will be at the expense of growing Nigeria’s democracy.
Saturday, September 10, 2016 was the appointed date for the conduct of the Edo State of Nigeria gubernatorial election and the stage was indeed set for the process to elect a new Governor that will succeed the incumbent, Adams Oshiomhole. Few days to the election there were indications that the election might be postponed. The clear basis for the postponement was that the General Certificate of Education, GCE Mathematics examination slated for the same day the election was to be conducted. Since such examination is usually administered at the same time nationwide one of the two events must give way to the other.
While the palpable dilemma was lurking, a new dimension crept in at the nick of time. Security agencies called for the postponement of the election on the grounds that security might be breached in Edo State on that day. Initially, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC won’t accept any suggestion that the election should be postponed. At last, the Commission buckled. It suddenly announced Saturday, September 28, 2016 as the new date for the election.
As a well-known Nigerian expression goes, ‘come and see’ how brickbats were flying over INEC’s announcement! Stakeholders took positions. The camp of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP representing the opposition said it was a ploy by the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, APC to delay the inevitable defeat it faced in the election. APC promptly accused PDP of trivializing the warning of security threats posted in unison by all the security agencies in the country.
The bickering that followed the postponed reechoed the rancour that marked the postponement of Nigeria’s general elections in 2015 by the electoral commission. The Presidential and National Assembly elections were scheduled for February 14, 2015 while the gubernatorial and state house of assembly elections were to be held on February 28, 2015. At that time, threats to the country’s security were cited as the reason for the postponement of the general elections. INEC grudgingly postponed the election to March 28, 2015 and April 11, 2015 respectively. The then INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega said at a news conference where he announced the new dates for those elections that although the electoral commission had prepared fully to conduct the elections as scheduled, it could not ignore the advice it received from the country’s security chiefs that disruptions of the electoral process were imminent.
Professor Jega said: “INEC not being a security agency that could by itself guarantee protection for personnel and materials, as well as voters during elections, the Commission cannot lightly wave off the advice by the nation’s Security Chiefs. The Commission is specifically concerned about the security of our ad hoc staff who constitute at least 600,000 young men and women, together with our regular staff, voters, election observers as well as election materials painstakingly acquired over the last one and half years.”
He went on, “No matter the extent of INEC’s preparedness, therefore, if the security of personnel, voters, election observers and election materials cannot be guaranteed, the life of innocent young men and women as well as prospects of free, fair, credible and peaceful elections would be greatly jeopardized.”
On that occasion, APC took the position that the election was being postponed to enable the incumbent President, Goodluck Jonathan to get some breather to reorganize and energize his campaign as APC was poised for victory if the elections were to take place as earlier determined by INEC. Of course, PDP stalwarts responded by defending the postponement as a necessity that was not subject to partisan assessments. A cursory survey by election watchers said at the time that 18 out of 27 political parties in the country supported the postponement.
In the current situation in Edo State, the shoe has moved to the other foot: hence the exchange of positions taken on the postponement by the two parties, PDP and APC.
Those who claimed to be neutral in the ensuing controversy said that the GCE examination was sacrosanct while there was still room for the gubernatorial election to hold. Given the fact that movement of persons is usually restricted on a typical election day in Nigeria, conducting the examinations in Edo State on the day of the election would have posed difficult logistic issues. They argued.
After all is said and done, the election is a straight fight between PDP’s candidate, Osagie Ise-Iyamu and APC’s Godwin Obaseki. Pundits are at work because given the backgrounds of the two principal candidates and hoping that the election will be free, fair and credible, the margin of victory may be narrower than many are predicting. In the final analysis, INEC will be expected to fix realistic time-tables for conduct of elections and security agencies should be at pains before posting warning of security threats. The possibility of shifting election dates for whatever reason will be at the expense of growing Nigeria’s democracy.