• Says 21 persons were killed during last Saturday’s election

From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja

According to a statement from the Chief Observer of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Nigeria, Barry Andrews, the recent governorship and state assembly elections in Nigeria were met with a high level of voter apathy.

Andrews explained that this was due in part to failures by political elites and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), stating that “public confidence and trust in INEC were severely damaged on February 25 due to lack of transparency and operational failures in the conduct of the federal level polls.”

Furthermore, Andrews noted that up until the postponement of the governorship and state assembly elections, INEC had failed to address public grievances and rebuild confidence in the electoral process.

However, he did acknowledge that INEC introduced various corrective measures to render a timely delivery of electoral materials and ensure prompt publication of result forms, some of which were effective.

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Despite these efforts, multiple incidents of thuggery and intimidation interrupted polling in various locations, primarily across the south, but also in states in the central and northern areas. There were reportedly some 21 fatalities. Andrews added that “violent incidents targeted voters, INEC personnel, citizen observers and journalists” in several states.

In addition to these issues, vote-buying was also observed by EU EOM observers, further detracting from an appropriate conduct of the elections. However, Andrews did note that the March 18 elections did not face the same problems with the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) as on February 25.

Andrews also addressed the lack of female representation in Nigerian politics, stating that “there were some 11,000 candidates competing for state elections, among whom a bare 10 per cent were women. Notably, leading political parties fielded only two female candidates for highly prized governor seats. This demonstrates a radical underrepresentation of women in political life and lack of internal party policies to support constitutionally prescribed inclusion and is contrary to Nigeria’s international commitments to eradicate discrimination against women.”

In conclusion, Andrews noted that despite the challenges faced, civil society played a crucial positive role in raising awareness and providing electoral information of public interest to voters. He emphasised the need for greater transparency and accountability of INEC and political elites in future elections.