On Kano underage voting controversy The dust raised over the underage persons caught voting in the recently conducted Kano local government elections, has refused to settle, instead, calls for probe of the incident have fueled the controversy. BASHIR MOHAMMED revisits the issue
Reps’ resolve
Against the backdrop of controversy that being generated by the reported case of child voters in the February 10, local government polls in Kano state, the Hose of Representatives, on Tuesday, March 6, restated its resolve to probe the incident.
The House has directed its committee on electoral and political parties’ matters to investigate the alleged registration and issuance of permanent voters’ cards (PVCs) to under-aged voters by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The committee, according to Blueprint check is mandated to report back in five weeks, for further legislative action. While adopting a motion by Hon. Johnbull Shekarau (PDP, Plateau), the House said it was worried about reports that there were incidences of under-aged voting in Kano during the council polls.
The House noted that the Director of Publicity and Voter Education of INEC, Oluwole Osaze Uzzi, had said during a television programme that the under-aged voters were registered because the lives of the registration officers were threatened.
Blueprint had sometime in February, reported: “It would be recalled that trending photos and videos evidently show children eagerly thumb printing after they had scaled through the smart card hurdles and approval by officials.”
Third tier of leadership
Local government, being the third tier of leadership was created for the purpose of bringing governance closer to the people and active service delivery by those saddled with the task of running the tier of leadership.
Its role had been explicitly encapsulated in the1999 Constitution as amended and that no democratic dispensation could ever be feasible and realistic, with the third tier of governance relegated to the background, and the expectation of the citizens turning into dross, against the backdrop of the fact that it was not created as a conduit to fleece public till.
Every sitting governor, is expected to work in tandem with those running the third tier for good governance to thrive.
Achilles heel
It has been observed that the issue of conducting local government elections by governors in the 36 states of the federation, had been their major Achilles heel, as many are reluctant to conduct the election and release monies accruing to them as clearly enshrined in the nation’s constitution.
Governors who have woefully failed to respect the spirit and letter of the constitution, as regards the issue of conducting elections in their states.
But for Governors Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, conducting local government elections in all the 44 local government councils in the state had never been an albatross to him, given the manner he allowed the election to hold devoid of executive fiat to stifle opposition forces .
On the eve of the council elections, the governor had told anyone who cared to listen that the All Progressives Congress (APC) was poised to sweep all the 44 councils in the state, knowing that his administration had made adequate preparations for victory.
Opposition’s fears
There was however palpable apprehension within the opposition camps that their participation in the polls would be counter -productive, considering the fact that no sitting governor worth his salt would love to lose his appeal politically, by paving the way for opposition to chip in and change the status quo.
The Peoples Democratic Party, being a strong bastion of opposition in Kano had chosen to play safe by refusing to actively participate in the polls after abortively seeking court injunction, for fear of a cataclysmic defeat.
Wide spread allegation of under age voting
However, the wide spread allegation of under- age voting appears to have stirred the hornet’s nest in the political lexicon of the state, with losers of the election, adducing conspiracy theory to eventually gain public sympathy.
Defence of legitimacy
In his stout defence of the legitimacy of the polls, the State Chairman of the Independent Electoral Commission(KANSIEC), Prof. Garba Ibrahim Sheka, said it was futile for those suspecting a foul play to use the issue of under age voting as a bargaining chip, since they have woefully failed to lodge a formal complaint to the Commission, for such an election to be thoroughly probed.
Foreign observers
It was however the contention of some of the foreign observers that monitored the election that in all the places they visited , they have never sighted under age voters stuffing the ballot boxes, not to talk of seeing them on queues lining up , waiting to vote.
In the words of one of the observers who spoke to this reporter on condition of anonymity said , with the prevalence of Social Media tricks, anything can be crafted to serve as an alibi on the net in order to deceive the most gullible minds into believing that the polls were rigged.
But those who had lost confidence and faith in the manner the election was conducted viewed the outcome, as a subtle ploy to deny them of their inalienable right to participate in the polls.
Sincerity of INEC to conduct credible polls
By and large, the allegation of under- age voting, has elicited a discordant tune in the polity, if not outrage, with many casting a slur on the sincerity of the Commission to conduct credible polls, while supporters of the APC had viewed such allegation as spurious and a manifestation of sheer loss of confidence.
In the words of Malam Shehu Fagge, PDP chieftain,what had happened to the opposition forces, was a clear rape of democracy in a democratic setting, alleging that the election had been stage-managed to give an age to the APC to have an appreciable edge and maintain its grip.
In a counter reaction, APC Chieftain, Alhaji Anas Abba Dala said it would be fool hardy for one to believe that an incumbent governor can afford to lose election under his watch, having had the opportunity to use his performance score- card to convince voters that he had lived up to his billing.
With the presence of the Committee dispatched to Kano state by the National Independent Electoral Commission (INEC), to investigate whether INEC register was used in conducting the polls, those who had lost the election have appeared to have gotten a short term relief.
The INEC national boss, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has vowed to interrogate the claims and give Nigerians a clinical result, as well as assured that all elections by INEC would be transparent, fair and credible. As time ticks inexorably, all eyes are on the elections umpire.
