The call for free and fair elections in Nigeria in 2015 is growing by the day. The desire of these concerned people is that Nigeria must endeavour to get it right.The latest voice in this regard is coming from the United States’ Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Ms Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
Thomas-Greenfield, who spoke in Abuja at the opening of the third Nigeria-US Bi-National Commission Working Group’s meeting on good governance, transparency and integrity, called on the federal government to establish an electoral offences tribunal before the 2015 general elections.She said US stands with the Nigerian people who say loudly that they will not accept electoral tampering, overtly heated rhetoric, vote selling or buying, and violence.
Thomas-Greenfield, who led a 23-man team to the meeting, urged the National Assembly to pass a legislation establishing electoral offences tribunal, a law that President Goodluck Jonathan proposed when he was Vice President.
While commending the conduct of the Nigeria Police and other security operatives in November 16, 2013 governorship election in Anambra State, the assistant secretary expressed US’s confidence in the Nigeria Police, the military and other security services, and hoped that they would be allowed to do their jobs professionally in Ekiti and Osun this year as they did in Anambra state. She advised the Nigerian electorate to hold politicians, Independent Electoral Commission (INEC), the media, judiciary and security agencies accountable for free and fair elections.She urged Nigerians to vote according to their conscience “and anyone who witnesses fraud must peacefully report to INEC and the Nigerian judicial system for resolution as nothing justifies violence.”
The US, according to Thomas-Greenfield, is proud to have supported the great electoral success so far recorded as a nation and as a people, adding that in the run-up to the 2011 elections, the US and United Kingdom contributed $31.3million to strengthen Nigeria’s electoral management body and civil society groups.
The envoy, who is visiting Nigeria for the third time since her appointment in 2013 as President Barak Obama’s lead diplomat for Africa, expressed her country’s support for the forthcoming elections in the country, explaining that the BNC meeting would discuss how to make Nigeria’s 2015 elections “the most peaceful, free, fair and credible in its history”.
On another platform in Ado-Ekiti, Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Perry Calderwood, has expressed the readiness of his country to support INEC in the conduct of the 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State and the 2015 general elections. Calderwood, who made this known at a one-day regional conference on promoting gender development and increased participation of woman in democratic governance in the South-west Nigeria, noted that Nigerians have been vocal in recent years in calling for increased accountability and respect for the rule of law.
The calls and support for free and fair elections coming from home and abroad are reassuring. INEC should put the necessary structure in place to give the elections all that is required.We believe that the elections in Ekiti and Osun in 2014 and the 2015 general elections can be conducted to the satisfaction of all stakeholders if we can all do the right thing.
The call for election offences tribunal is not new. Many distinguished personalities have lent their voices to it over the years. The Justice Uwais Commission set up by President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2007 recommended the establishment of election offences tribunal. An election offences tribunal will dissuade rigging, violence and other criminal activities carried out before, during and after elections. It will also help to resolve electoral disputes within three months.
