The Nigerian Guild of Editors has urged federal lawmakers to expedite and pass the Bill establishing the Electoral Offences Tribunal to punish acts of election malpractices in the 2023 general elections.
In addition, the NGE proposed collaborating with the Independent National Electoral Commission to ensure free, fair, and credible elections.
These calls were made by the NGE’s President, Mustapha Isah, on Friday during the maiden edition of the Editors’ Forum held in Ikeja, Lagos.
Speaking at the editors’ gathering which featured the INEC chairman, Prof Mahmoud Yakubu and members of his team, the NGE president stressed that the Editors’ Forum was conceptualised to provide an opportunity for key actors to address editors about their preparations for the 2023 general elections.
Isah said that editors will use the forum to seek clarifications on different issues and ask critical questions on matters relating to the elections.
The NGE President raised concerns about some issues that have plagued Nigeria’s electoral system.
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He said, “Let me use this opportunity to call on the National Assembly to expedite action on the passage of the Bill setting up the Electoral Offences Tribunal. Those who commit electoral malfeasance must be brought to justice. We are ready to work with other credible organisations, to put pressure on the federal lawmakers to pass this all-important bill before the 2023 elections.”
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On the menace of vote buying, Isah described it as a major threat to Nigeria’s democracy. “The Guild sees it as one of the manifestations of the weaponization of poverty in the land. Poverty could make some Nigerians offer their votes for sale for a paltry sum, not minding the devastating consequences on good governance.
“Why do politicians buy votes now? The answer is simple. Votes are beginning to count due to the reforms introduced by INEC.
“It’s obvious that Nigerians are now more confident in the electoral process. The registration of 10.48 million new voters ahead of the 2023 polls is another testimony to this,” he added.
Isah charged the INEC chairman not to betray the trust of the electorates in the forthcoming elections.
“The confidence of Nigerians in your commission was greatly boosted with the recent conduct of the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections. Please, Nigerians want a repeat or an improvement in the 2023 polls. Please, don’t disappoint them.
“I’m happy that the commission has maintained its position that electronic transmission of results has come to stay. The Guild is with you on this. We are prepared to fight any attempt to take Nigeria back to the dark days of writing election results in hotels and beer parlours. The people’s will must prevail at all times.
“However, we should watch out. Desperate Nigerian politicians can go to any length to manipulate the elections. They might try hacking your systems to influence the results.
“The Guild calls on the commission to take serious steps to safeguard your systems and prevent hackers from doing any damage. The Guild advises the politicians to go to the electorate and sell their policies and programmes to win their votes rather than waiting to manipulate the system.
The NGE leader stressed the need for journalists to be genuinely interested in nurturing Nigeria’s democratic space because of their role in the fight for the restoration of democracy in the country.
“When some of the politicians who are dominating the political space today were busy organizing one million man marches for Abacha to continue in office forever, we were in the forefront calling on the military to return to the barracks.
“Some journalists paid the supreme price and others were jailed for embarking on this noble, but dangerous venture. Some had to go into exile while some media houses were shut down for months.
“Those who didn’t fight for democracy may not be in a position to defend it. Little wonder that the current politicians can’t even uphold internal party democracy. They find it very difficult to obey their parties’ constitutions which they drew up themselves.
“So, you could see that it is in our enlightened self-interest to work with INEC to deliver free, fair and credible elections and in the process deepen people’s interest in democracy,” Isah added.
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