Tag: Ekiti poll:

YESTERDAY’S governorship poll in Ekiti, regardless of the winner and the professionalism or otherwise of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), was supposed to showcase how far in sophistication the Muhammadu Buhari presidency had gone in terms of governmental atmospherics, and how deeply it had entrenched a democratic culture. The last few days of the campaign, especially by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), indicated very clearly but depressingly that the presidency was neither mindful of the so-called atmospherics nor inclined in any way to entrenching anything but the usual strong-arm and oppressive style of enforcing law and order.

There is a limit to just how far down the line the president can pass the buck. The buck stops with him, really. If Nigerians cannot see sophistication and administrative finesse in the way elections are conducted and policed under the Buhari presidency, then they may not be quite as misguided in comparing this presidency with the Jonathan presidency or in concluding that there is no settling the precedent between the two presidencies. Dr Jonathan presided over an abhorrent system of doing things, though he still managed to redeem a little of himself by conceding defeat in the 2015 presidential poll. But in policing the 2014 poll that brought Ayo Fayose into office, Dr Jonathan displayed very poor judgement and atrocious politics.

It is shocking that the Buhari presidency, perhaps because of its natural affinity for conservatism and reaction, could not see why it had to be different. After all, going by the APC manifesto, it had promised a new modus operandi and, even more ambitiously, a new modus vivendi. But not only has this presidency refused to distance itself from the Jonathan culture, it has also embraced and even justified it, arguing implausibly that overwhelming the state with policemen was both reasonable and defensible. It is not defensible. Mr Fayose may be accustomed to theatrical politics, as much as he is bombastic, and may have even exaggerated the assault he said he suffered at the hands of law enforcement agents, but the manner in which the police dealt with his rally — manhandling the crowd and raining tear gas on them — was despicably replicative of the Jonathan era.

Hear the argument of the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Habila Joshak, in charge of policing the election: “Because of the tense situation, we had to do what we did. We heard that His Excellency (Fayose) was doing something in the Government House, the cyclists narrowed the road but we won’t go and block his place. We don’t want people to gather and start another rally because dispersing them with smoke is not the best. The pre-emptive measure was okay. It is better to be pre-emptive by ensuring that the situation did not degenerate.”

Mr Joshak added: “We are not here to usurp the authority of Governor Fayose. We are not here to rubbish him because he represents the people. But we are not going to allow any unauthorised rally that can trigger violence in the state. You can see that the state is tensed up. As law enforcement agents, we must be proactive and take actions that can prevent crisis rather than trying to quell it after it might have broken out.” Then somewhat contrite a day later, he again added: “What I said was that those massing for the rally should be asked to leave because it is not good going by the mood of the state now to hold rally or street procession. I didn’t say they should use force. This is an election, and electioneering is a civil matter anywhere across the globe. So, police as security agents can’t use force on the people. But I want to assure the good people of Ekiti State that such a mistake will never repeat itself.”

The damage was already done. The police had acted brutishly and impetuously, and the government cannot exonerate itself. First the government deployed a disproportionate number of security agents; then the police, normally overexcited, deeply officious and easily irritated, unlawfully assumed powers not vouchsafed to them by the constitution to authorise or forbid rallies; and then they besieged the Ekiti Government House and rained tear gas on the crowd. Their actions were foolish and counterproductive. They displayed bias and poor professionalism. It was clear to all many years back that Dr Jonathan was uninterested in enthroning a democratic culture in Nigeria. It is even clearer now that his successor does not know what that culture is nor what it entails.