The imperative of voters education

There is no denying the fact that free, fair, credible and peaceful elections form the firm foundation on which to build the solid house of democracy, anywhere in the world. The challenges however, are many, particularly as it concerns Nigeria’s money-driven polity. Amongst the hurdles placed on the intricate path to good leadership in the country is mass poverty on the part of millions of the electorate scattered all over the rural areas. And since the cost of accessing positions of authority, as well as running the machinery of government are on the prohibitive side politics is abnormally skewed in favour of the few rotten rich.

Fully aware of this anomaly, they capitalise on it, instead of ameliorating it. Firstly, they make fanciful promises which they do not intend to keep but which they know have compelling appeal to the long-suffering masses. These are promises the poor masses see only in their nebulous, distant dreams! So, not a few of them capitulate to taking bags of rice, salt, sugar, vegetable oil and now, raw cash from their political leaders, who remember them only during electioneering campaigns. This is an odious act now popularly called vote-buying.

The other factor is ignorance, as this class of voters view their political leaders as ‘they’ and the masses as ‘we’. In fact, they see them as some demi-gods, to be feared and worshipped little knowing that in democracy power belongs to them and not their unrelenting oppressors.

But beyond the crude and cruel antics of cajoling and coercing the electorate with money, they are adept at whipping up waves of sentiments of religion and ethnicity so far they swing in their electoral favour.

The onus therefore, lies on the shoulders of members of the civil society to step up to enlighten the voters on their rights and responsibilities. Incidentally, one became a beneficiary of the recent partnership between the Guild of Public Affairs Analysts of Nigeria (GPAAN) and the Dr. Joe Odumakin-led Women Arise for Change Initiative (WACI). That was when the Senior Programme Officer of the latter group in the person of Comrade Olufemi Lawson shed light on the nitty-gritty of Voter Education. Indeed, it became an eye-opener which members of the larger public should gladly glean from.

Ordinarily, it is the onerous duty of all the registered political parties to embark on sustained voters’ education running through the gamut of the four-year period of any government in power. It should not be carried out only during the periods of campaigns. In fact, it should be budgeted for. Sadly, they hardly do so here in Nigeria because their focus is more predicated on angling for power and holding unto it, for self-serving purposes.

The opposite situation plays itself out in the United States of America (USA) where the voters are consistently enlightened by the community heads of their political parties, virtually on daily basis. Members of the Civil Society should take it upon themselves to let the voters know that the Permanent Voters Card (PVC) is compulsory for every Nigerian voter; not just for banking purpose or enrolling their children in school but to freely discharge their franchise. And to take ownership of the electoral process, what rightly belongs to them, right from the point of voting for their preferred candidates.

Besides, we as mass media practitioners, public affairs analysts and social commentators should assist by using the programmes at our disposal(on radio, television, print and social media) to reach out to the eligible voters. We should be educating them, on all it takes to be active participants in the democratic process. That they should not fall easy preys in the hands of greedy politicians who have weaponised poverty! That Nigeria should not be turned into a market place for vote selling and buying. We should say a vehement ‘No!’ to the use of incidence Form but ‘Yes’ to signing the Electoral Amendment Bill into Law by the president.

Also, political campaigns should be issue-based devoid of mudslinging, character assassination and hate speech. The voters deserve to know what each candidate, using the platform of his or her political party wants to do, in specific terms to right the many wrongs of the past.

In retrospect, the ‘Age of Enlightenment’, was a late 17th- and 18th-century intellectual movement emphasising reason, individualism and skepticism. The Enlightenment presented a challenge to traditional religious views. Enlightenment thinkers were the liberals of their day. They believed that rational thought could lead to human improvement and was the most legitimate mode of thinking. They saw the ability to reason as the most significant and valuable human capacity.

American political leaders like Jefferson, Franklin, James Otis and John Adams were heavily influenced by Enlightenment thinking. In fact, it provided the philosophical basis of the American Revolution. An effective model for Public enlightenment should be one that will enable all stakeholders gain easy access to each other.

In the Nigerian situation, we have had the likes of Herbert Macaulay publishing the Lagos Daily News, Ernest Ikoli, using the (Daily Times, 1926) and Nnamidi Azikiwe (The West African Pilot in 1937) with a similar focus on public enlightenment. They brought news from the outside world to grab the attention of the growing middle class. It was also to highlight the challenges of national development as well as to demand for political independence from the colonial masters.

Decades later, attention shifted to enlightening the public on the demand for democratic government from the iron-grip of the military dictators. So, magazines such as Newswatch (Ray Ekpu, Yakubu Muhammed and Dele Giwa, of blessed memory), The News (Bayo Onauga) and Tell (Ayodele Akinkuotu), went to town to stir public consciousness in this regard.

Ever since the return of democratic dispensation in 1999, attention has since moved to the persisting quest for good governance in Nigeria. There are several top-rate television and radio stations, newspapers and online publications trying to bridge the information gap between our political leaders and the led majority. The truth however, is that much still has to be done, to sensitise Nigerians on their rights and responsibilities.

But we are still battling to have governments peopled by honest and patriotic Nigerians- those who make promises and keep to them; those who take responsibilities for their actions instead of becoming masters of blame-game. We say no to the issues of nepotism, lope-sided political appointments, religious and tribal sentiments, insecurity, disunity, joblessness and mass misery. But we say yes to the calls for political restructuring, drastic reduction to high costs of accessing political power and running the machinery of government.

All said, we want an electoral process devoid of violence, ballot box snatching, brow beating opponents with intimidation and of course, the recent manifestation of vote-buying. Let our votes count, when the people have made their choices.

Ayo Oyoze Baje