The Bayelsa governorship election

IF the verbal altercation between the two major candidates in the governorship election of Bayelsa State should be cause for concern as Saturday’s rerun polls draw near, it may also signal that the violence and irregularities which marred the first but inconclusive election may not have abated. And it is important that the law enforcement agencies in particular call the candidates to order; and ensure there is no breakdown of law and order.

Additionally, both the incumbent governor, Seriake Dickson who is candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and his counterpart in the All Progressives Congress (APC), Timipre Sylva, a former governor of the state, should guard their utterances on the election. Their statements, which are capable of fuelling public disorder, are unbecoming of leaders. Yet, they ought to know that elections, even for governorship, are healthy games in which a party will win and the other loses. That is no reason for the state to go up in conflict. At the end of the day, the interest of the ordinary citizens of Bayelsa should be paramount, and should not be undermined.

Among other accusations, Governor Dickson blamed Sylva for allegedly employing security agents to protect and provide cover for criminal elements in the state. And in a sharp reaction, Sylva charged Dickson for allegedly importing gunmen into the state during the first election. Such accusations, traded as they were only days to the rerun, appear intended to inflame passions. The two contestants should control their ambitions.

Bayelsans will again head to the poll on Saturday to finalise the stalemated governorship election in the state, following the inconclusive status of the gubernatorial election held a few weeks ago. Like the Kogi gubernatorial poll before it, it was marred by violence, inducement of voters, apathy and sundry electoral irregularities. Southern Ijaw, Ekeremor, Brass and Nembe local councils where thugs unleashed violence were worst hit. The NYSC members serving as ad hoc electoral officers were reportedly manhandled.

Despite the presence of security operatives, lives were feared lost in the mayhem that accompanied the election exercise. The case of malfunctioning of card reader machines was widespread. In Sagbama, the card reader could not recognise the fingerprint of Governor Seriake Dickson, his wife and his mother. Also, the former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife had difficulty getting accredited because the card reader malfunctioned but was resolved by the use of back up machine. Even then, the machine still failed to accredit the former president’s mother and other associates.

While results trickled in from other areas in the state, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officer in Southern Ijaw Local Council announced cancellation of election in the area. And efforts made to continue the voting the next day were also botched due to irregularities. Thus, INEC declared the election as inconclusive, cancelling votes from Southern Ijaw, the mainly-riverine and biggest local council in the state. The deployment of two commissioners of police, two brigade commanders, five battalion commanders and deputy commander of the Civil Defence Corps to ensure the safety of lives and property during the election had little effect.

Timipre Sylva,

To extricate itself from the deadlock, INEC had to broker a forum which allowed the emergence of consensus date for the re-run of the electoral process in Southern Ijaw Council and in some units spread across seven other councils of the state.

Overall, the PDP won six out of the seven council areas released by the electoral commission, polling 105,748 votes, against the APC, which scored 72,594 with victory in one council area. The disputed areas hold the ace in the election. For example, Southern Ijaw Council has 120,827 registered voters, the second highest after Yenagoa, which has 135,025 registered voters.

Sadly, the country is confronted by divisive elections when it ought to have moved on. The recurring fact of Nigeria’s elections as being inconclusive is not a charitable attribute. Rather, it taints the complexion of Nigeria’s democracy, nudging it further into the grey zone of illiberal conduct, neither democratic nor authoritarian. Many things are wrong in Bayelsa. The eight local councils have been polarised into two divisions – two governors, both political heavy weights are locked in a do-or-die fight that has resulted in a stalemate. The crisis is also between the interest of the Ijaws and Ijaws representing external interests. Evidently central to the crisis appears to be the calculus of 2019, on the assumption of securing a new alliance of south-north should the west-north alliance that produced the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration break down. This smacks of lack of political insight as no governance is going on, and the political class appeared not to be perturbed. Clearly, politicians have learnt nothing. Their inclination is attuned only towards acquisition of power, not development. It has spawned a wide turf in which politics is the only job in town.

The stakeholders should sheathe their sword and allow democratic processes, including resort to court, play up fairly. The judiciary has the primary duty to resolve election disputes. In Saturday’s rerun, the police should play a dominant but impartial role in the electoral process as well as the decentralisation of the distribution of the electoral materials to avoid fraud and violence by all parties. The INEC must make amends in respect of the glitches occasioned by the malfunctioning of card readers. These measures should strengthen the credibility of the process; and democracy will be better for it.