SUBAIR MOHAMMED, in this report, examines the dwindling interest of residents in elections in Lagos State.
LAGOS State has the highest number of registered voters in the country, yet at every election circle, it records one of the lowest participation percentages among the electorate. Last Saturday’s local government election will go down in history as one with perhaps the poorest turnout since the return of democracy in 1999. As expected, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) swept the poll, leaving just two councillorship seats to rival Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Young Progressives Party (YPP) but the supposed landslide victory is clouded by the wide possible berth given the poll by the same people the elected chairmen and councillors are supposed to represent and serve.
In the constitutionally recognised 20 local government areas in the state and the 37 local council development areas, a total of 6,570,291 registered voters are credited to the state with a total population of more than 21 million residents. The ongoing online voter registration exercise being undertaken by the country’s electoral body is expected to push Lagos State beyond the seven million mark, even as the population is expected to surpass 22 million soon.
Despite these numbers, the total votes harvested by the winner of last weekend’s poll were 584,619, with the first runner-up, the PDP, allegedly recording a paltry 80,719 votes, from the 13,323 polling units in the state. The opposition rejected the outcome, citing widespread multiple voting by suspected supporters of the ruling party.
The outcome of the July 24 election showed that about six million registered voters stayed away from the ballot, despite the vote-buying syndrome that has come to characterise elections in the state and elsewhere. Although 15 political parties registered for the poll, only the ruling APC and opposition PDP got votes that add up.
Even the primary election of the ruling party, weeks earlier, generated more enthusiasm among the party members, a proof that registered voters in the state who are not members of any political parties are practically staying away from voting exercise in the state, considering the over two million registered members the ruling party claimed to have in its kitty in the state.
From the figures from the state electoral body, it would mean that less than 25 per cent of party members participated in the local government election, if about five million registered voters who are not party members are discounted from the voters’ total figures.
Although the exercise was relatively peaceful, the largely empty polling booths will continue to be the most enduring memory of the said election, even as the elected chairmen and councillors take oath of office to represent the people who appear not to want them again.
No confidence —APC operative
Pa Azeem Owe, a grassroots mobiliser and chieftain of the APC in Itire-Ikate, identified loss of confidence as one of the major reasons residents refused to vote in the last council poll. According to him, the low turnout recorded at the polling units was because his party had failed to deliver on its promises to the people at the grassroots.
He said: “The electorate are disappointed in our party because we have failed to provide what they asked for. With the low turnout, they are stylishly telling us what to expect in 2023. We are able to garner the little votes because the poll was conducted by LASIEC. If it were to be held by INEC, we would fail woefully. The people refused to come out to vote because they are tired of empty promises by the APC.
“We need restructuring and readjustment in the party but I don’t see the seriousness in the leadership of the party at all levels. But if they want to run government of the people by the people and for the people, they should want what the people want. A truly democratic party will at all times be on the side of the people and not against the people.
“As a grassroots politician, during elections, we go from door to door around Itire-Ikate LCDA canvassing for votes, promising the people improved standard of living at the grassroots level. We give them the assurance of building good drainage system, infrastructural amenities such as good road network, well equipped libraries, modern study facilities and all and the people in turn would give us their votes.
“But when our elected chairmen get into power, their priorities change and the people would start calling us liars for failing to deliver on our promises. They call us names for not feeling the impact of government as promised during electioneering. They are disappointed in the system and that is why they boycotted the polls.”
This is the worst turnout so far —CDA chairman
Ajeromi Ifelodun LCDA is one of the densely populated districts in Lagos State. Residents of the district are known to massively participate in every election but this was not the case in last Saturday’s council poll and most of the polling units in the district recorded low turnout of voters.
Giving reasons for the low turnout, chairman of the Community Development Committee, Mr Tunde Balogun, said the people had lost confidence in the election process and leadership at the grassroots.
“The level of people’s participation in grassroots politics was alarming but this last election was the worst. Many people didn’t come out to vote and the reason given for their absence is that they are not getting the rewards for their involvement in grassroots politics. They believe the efforts they put into canvassing for votes from the people and voting on Election Day were wasted efforts because elected politicians enrich themselves with public funds. This is why people showed little interest in the local government election.
“Another reason is that people believe it is business as usual, as the state government, either they vote or not, will rig their way to power. It is believed that whether they vote or not, anointed candidates would win.
“But I think if a candidate is democratically chosen by members of the party during primaries, there will definitely be a large turnout on the day of the election but candidates are selected by party leaders, which is why the people decided to boycott the poll to register their displeasure.
“The electorate have lost confidence in the process and the only way to restore the confidence is for INEC to take over the conduct of local government election in Lagos State. Once this is done, the turnout will improve.”
Politicians are liars —Resident
Among the eligible voters that stayed away from last weekend’s poll was Sulaiman Ojo, a 33-year-old fashion designer in the Lagos Mainland. He said, “I didn’t even know who was running for the chairmanship seat.”
Throughout the period the exercise lasted, Ojo was busy with his craft, designing ready-to-wear clothing for his numerous clients. “I felt that my vote won’t count, therefore I would rather exert my energy tending to the needs of my clients than wasting my time at the polling unit under the sun to vote for a party that has in no way impacted my life,” he said.
Despite his apparent lack of interest in the exercise, he was obviously concerned about the political process in the state and the alleged pre-determined outcomes of elections.
He reasoned: “Lagos is a one-party state and we already know who the winner of an election would be because at the end of the day, there would be no election but selection. We already know who would emerge the winner even before the start of the election. The political class has made voting an ineffective tool for accomplishing economic prosperity and political change. At every election cycle, we vote at the grassroots but upon assuming office, elected officers focus on assisting themselves to get better while neglecting the populace.
“There is nothing for the voters; no good roads and no jobs. When politicians promise anything, it is a lie. It is time the APC considered the future of the youths in whatever they do because a hungry man will think about surviving the harsh economic reality rather than voting at an election. Many people don’t vote because they have been disengaged by the political class who impose candidates against popular will, thereby overruling the wish of the people.”
Popular view
Ojo’s view runs deep across the state. A trader couldn’t contain her displeasure for not being able to hit the street early last Saturday because of the restriction imposed on movement within the state by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, which is the usual practice during elections. However, those who had the opportunity of transacting their businesses during the restriction period which was between 8.00 a.m. and 3.00 p.m. did so without concern for the exercise. Saturday Tribune observed during the election that apart from those seeking offices and their supporters, practically all other stakeholders in the state appeared tired of election into local government councils. At different polling units, electoral officers and party agents simply sat idly waiting for voters, many of whom never showed up. In many trending videos, voters with their faces shown were seen thumb-printing multiple ballots papers for the ruling party. There have been no reports of arrest and no official statement has been made concerning the obvious malpractice beyond the opposition party rejecting the outcome on the basis of the said electoral offences.
Across the board, residents simply waved off the council poll as of no importance to them, arguing that those elected in recent past have been of no use to their existence as residents of the state. It is on record that the ruling party gave return ticket to nearly all the council chairmen whose performance in office in the first place kept voters away from the polling booths. All of them were re-elected.
Beyond the residents, even party leaders, including Governor Sanwo-Olu, attested the voter apathy that greeted the exercise, same for the electoral body’s chairperson.
Before the poll, some top chieftains of the ruling party had predicted that unhappy party members and disgruntled residents would punish the performance of the ruling party at the grassroots. While that came to pass, the voters simply decided to punish both the ruling party and the opposition by staying away altogether, instead of casting their ballots for other parties to punish the ruling party.
Poverty is responsible —IPAC
For the Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC), poverty is responsible for the low representation of the electorate at the polls.
According to the Lagos State chairman of IPAC, James Adesina, a hungry man cannot be motivated or convinced to vote. “The reason for this is that the people have doubts about the electoral process,” he said.
Adesina said: “With what LASIEC has done in terms of sensitising the people, I believe the people should be motivated to come out and vote but poverty is the main issue here because a hungry person cannot be motivated to vote.
“Hunger is one of the factors responsible for the low turnout recorded at the polls and not inadequate security. There are police officers and other security agents everywhere to protect the people. I think we need to step up enlightenment and sensitisation campaign for subsequent elections.”.
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