Political Issues
Political Participation and Electoral Violence in Nigeria -By Aniekpeno John Inyang
Electoral Violence is caused by many things such as:
Do or die approach to politics by Politicians.
The lack of employment for youths who are often the tools for electoral violence.
“Election days and venues have been turned into theatres of war“
“Enough of bloodshed just because of election; you find out many people are being killed and in election venues there is mayhem. We call on security agencies to provide maximum security on election days also, those offenders must not go scot free whichever party they belong to”
The above statement was made by the President of the Nigerian Labour Congress(NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, during a roundtable discussion on electoral reforms organized by Yiaga Africa on the 19th of August, 2020. The statement is a sad reality of the true nature of most elections that take place in Nigeria.
Electoral Violence has been a huge stumbling block to the organization of credible elections in Nigeria and urgent steps need to be taken to curtail the problem.
Already, many Nigerians have refused to take part in the Country’s electoral process due to the incessant cases of violence during elections. Women in Management, Business and Public Service, (WIMBIZ) during the annual Women inPolitics (WIMPol) conference held recently identified electoral violence as one of the impeding factors to women participation in politics. The lack of political participation by Nigerians in the affairs of their country has far reaching implications for the Country. This article takes a look at the concept of political participation and how electoral violence has adversely affected it.
Political participation refers to the active involvement of citizens in the all round political activities of their country. It covers all areas that have to do with the citizens taking part in the governance process. There are different forms of political participation which are:
- Standing for Political offices.
- Getting a voters card and Voting during elections.
- Forming or Joining political parties.
- Discussing political issues.
- Staying up-to-date with current political events and educating other Citizens on Political issues.
Political participation is very important for any democratic society. The importance can be seen in some of these ways:
- It ensures that the right persons get into political offices: When citizens take an active interest in political participation, the right persons usually get elected into office. This is because more people, especially the right people, join politics.
- It promotes good governance and Accountability: Good governance and accountability is upheld as the people act as watchdogs to all government activities. They criticise negative policies and initiate the process for a smooth change of government whenever the need arises.
- Political participation enhances speedy development: The fall out of having the right leaders and accompanying good governance will directly translate to speedy societal development. Social amenities and better infrastructure are provided.
- Its makes the citizens have a sense of belonging: political participation helps the citizens to feel part of something worthwhile. They get the opportunity to serve their country and contribute to national development.
Electoral Violence may be referred to as any action pepertuated by an individual or group to cause harm to others during elections. Electoral violence is a form of unacceptable behaviour during elections and a condemnable component of electoral Malpractice which needs to be urgently curtailed to promote free and Fair elections in Nigeria.
Electoral Violence is caused by many things such as:
Do or die approach to politics by Politicians.
The lack of employment for youths who are often the tools for electoral violence.
Lack of adequate security at polling stations.
Total disregard for due process and democracy.
Prevalence of injustice and abuse of electoral processes.
Electoral violence is the primary cause of political apathy in this part of the world and its attendant effects on political participation is highly detrimental. When Citizens fail to be part of political participation because of electoral violence, the following are bound to be obtainable:
Lack of Citizens’ trust and Confidence in Government.
Increase in crime rate and the propensity of the youths to engage in violence.
Negative image for the Country amongst the comity of Nations.
Poor Leadership characterised by corruption and ineptitude.
Disregard for due process and core democratic values.
From the above, it can easily be seen how dangerous electoral violence is. The following are some the ways that may be useful in reducing it to the barest minimum:
Provision of adequate security at election venues to protect voters from miscreants.
Provision of gainful employments to youths to discourage them from being seduced into becoming political thugs.
Ensuring the true independence of the electoral body.
Educating the general public on the dangers of electoral violence and its impact on the society.
Arresting and prosecuting all persons found to be remotely connected to any act of electoral violence.
Nigeria is great Country and can only become greater when issues such as electoral violence are swiftly dealt with. The menace requires collective effort to end. The citizens and the government of the day must work together to put an end to electoral violence.
