As the 2023 General
Election was approaching, Nigerians hoped and trusted in the promises of INEC
to deliver free, fair and credible elections across board. Alas, the
irregularities that were occasioned in the 2023 General Elections were probably
more than all the previous elections in the fourth Republic combined. From
failure to upload results from the Polling Units to the INEC server, to failure
of BVAS machines in some polling units and the biggest of all, late upload of
figures (albeit irregular) on the IREV portal. Nigerians had one reason too
many to grumble over the outing of INEC in the 2023 general elections. The real
insult to Nigerians was that INEC refused to follow strictly the Electoral Act
2022 as well as its own guidelines for election.
The above weaknesses of
INEC are not exhaustive. Many Nigerians were technically disenfranchised in the
last election by the failure of INEC to make available Permanent Voters Cards
for fresh applicants and for persons who did transfer of voters’ records.
Few days to writing this
piece of my mind, I had a brief chat in Abuja with the revered Dr. Oby
Ezekwesili, a former Minister of Education under the Administration of
President Olusegun Obasanjo. Our common pain at the point of our brief chat was
that Nigerians now look up to the Courts to determine who becomes the
substantive President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, or the Governor of a
State. As such, the Polls which ought to be final deciding factor of elected
leaders has been relegated to being a mere part of a process.
“Go-To-Court” - That was the language the ruling party who also
won the last Presidential election used to speak to aggrieved parties – parties
who lost at the polls. Nigerians would have had no reason to read meanings to
this statement if the Judiciary was not harassed, gagged and abused by the
outgoing administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in the last eight years.
We were all here when security forces loyal to the Presidency was unleashed on
Justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the dead of the night.
To most Nigerians, the
phrase go-to-court means, “go and vent your grievances in court, you will meet
us there”. The question I ask is how did we get here?
Moving on from the
rhetoric, whether or not we like it, a new Administration kicks off on the 29th
May 2023 when Bola Tinubu will be sworn in as the President and
Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He is the
President-Elect and President-designated, pending when all matters are put to
bed in court. COURT !!!
The least Nigerians can
do at this point is to pray for the next persons who take the reins of power at
the Presidential and Governorship levels. This does not exclude legislators,
both at the national and state levels. 1 Timothy 2:1-2 is instructive on this.
It says:
Therefore I exhort first of all that
supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all
men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet
and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. (NKJV)
I invite Nigerians and
everyone who has the interest of Nigeria at heart to seek the face of God in
line with Proverbs 29:2 which says:
When the righteous are in authority, the people
rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn. (KJV)
We need our leaders to
be righteous in order for the people to enjoy the dividends of governance. A
situation where we refuse to pray for our leaders, probably because we did not
vote for them or because they are not our tribal men, the country will be run
on auto-pilot - anything goes. God forbid.
Oluwaseyi Arowosebe Esq.
is the Principal Partner at De Lex Consult, a corporate and commercial law firm
in Abuja. He can be reached at seyiarowosebe@gmail.com. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter @seyiarowosebe.
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