The long-awaited February 23rd presidential and National Assembly elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have come and gone. However, the controversies and consequences associated with them are still lingering in the media and in the minds of many Nigerians. OLASUNKANMI OSO sampled the opinions of Nigerians to enquire if they were satisfied with the conduct and the results of the February 23rd elections. Their views:
Godspower Olorunsanu
I am not satisfied at all. After the election was shifted, we need to ask ourselves what INEC brought to the table. It was still the same old template which allowed rigging and all sorts of irregularities. I believe we can still do better as a country. I also believe INEC could do better by spending huge amount of money on election to select less than a thousand office holders.
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Steve Agbota
It is so unfortunate that we cannot conduct free and fair elections in Nigeria. The 2019 presidential election was a charade. This is the worst election I have ever witnessed in the history of Nigeria. For instance, in some polling units in Lagos, there was no accreditation. INEC officials at the polling unit were busy giving out ballot papers to voters without accreditation and most voters voted twice since there was no accreditation. Ballot boxes were snatched in some places. Political party leaders went to some local governments to collect PVCs on behalf of voters and promised to distribute them in their respective wards. So many people could not exercise their civic right.
They withheld my PVC up till now because I told them I am not supporting any party, but that I would vote the right candidates. I am not satisfied with the way the election was conducted especially in Lagos.
Aiyepola Taopheequat
I am annoyed at the moment. are APC and PDP the only political parties in Nigeria? When would we end this satirical and weird cycle? I doubt if the electorate understand the implications of voting for those two parties. It is a sham. APC is still PDP, and vice versa. And the youths, until we stop social media activism, we would not do the right things. I hope we all survive the brute of the incoming drama.
Christianah Olugade
I believe that INEC did not provide enough materials for all the ad hoc staff to carry out their duties properly. They had to manage materials. So, how would you expect a perfect result? Majority of the collation officers were making mistakes with the figures, telling us it is human errors. Why did INEC not employ technicians/experts they know would do the job well? Nigerians keep longing for improvements now and then. I would not be surprised if we are retrograding instead of progressing.
Alfred Olufemi
The electioneering process was not too bad for a growing democracy like ours. There is a lot to improve on in order to leave the primordial setup. Now that our population is rising every day, we need to plan towards the future by exploring technology to aid the process. I mean e-voting. This would curb the violence that comes with the election exercises in some parts of the country. Ultimately, it would help popular participation. People would not be restricted to vote in their registration areas. You could vote from anywhere in the world.
Kayode Omotoso
The election was marred by irregularities and by the blood of many Nigerians. I must be frank, even though I am not saying the election was rigged, the initial postponement of the election led to voters’ apathy. Also, the new system in town, ‘vote buying syndrome’, puts a question mark on the integrity of the electoral body. However, there is still room for improvement in the March 9th election. And, I so much believe that one day, we would arrive at a point where the voters and candidates would have no need to question election results and where human lives would not be used as a mark of election periods.
John Nwachukwu
If I am to base my judgment on the fact that I was an ad hoc staff, I would rate INEC fair and recommend that a whole lot of work need to be done especially in the areas of their gadgets (card readers) and voters’ education. Also, its observers should not just base their judgment on the urban areas but also from the local areas as well. Furthermore, the security and welfare of the ad hoc staff’ and voters are other things to look into. Until then, I am not satisfied with what I saw last Saturday during the elections.
Mahfouz Adedimeji
As a citizen and domestic observer, I am satisfied with the elections. I think INEC has done a commendable job, however, not without some challenges. Voter education should be improved on as I observed that many people had challenges with thump-printing against the right party. I am not surprised that a large number of votes were invalidated across the country. Also, INEC should weed the parties to separate the contenders from the pretenders. There should not be more than five presidential contestants. Let the so-called parties that confuse the voters contest at the local and state levels. The presidency is a serious business and if a party does not have structures across the country, it should be disqualified.
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