Imperatives for Electoral Reform in Nigeria
CHAPTER THREE IMPERATIVES FOR ELECTORAL REFORM
3.1 INTRODUCTION
In the context of a weak electoral body, a perverted electoral process and undemocratic political parties, the stage is set for flawed elections. Thus, the 1999 and 2003 elections, like virtually all the preceding elections in Nigeria’s post-colonial history, were classic cases of electoral fraud. In broad terms, there have been two kinds of elections in Nigeria’s post-colonial history. These are the ‘transition’ and ‘consolidation’ elections[1]. The transition elections are those organized by a departing political authority, which include those organized by the departing colonial authorities in 1959, and those organized by military regimes in 1979, 1993 (aborted) and 1999. Consolidation elections are those organized by a civilian regime and are intended to consolidate civil rule. These include the 1964/65, 1983 and 2003 elections. While virtually all these elections have been contested, the elections of 1983 and 2003 stand out as the most corrupt and fraudulent. The shared characteristics of all elections in Nigeria, include massive electoral frauds, the conception and practice of politics as warfare, the lack of continuity in the political platforms used by members of the political class, high levels of opportunism and thus a low level of commitment to the different variants of right-wing political ideologies that characterize the political class, the objectification of politics, and the mobilization of ethnic identities as the basis for defining the legitimacy of claims to political power[2].
Elections in Nigeria have been fraught with violence, massive rigging, voters intimidation and fraud. There is also a deliberate attempt by the ruling party to contrive and monopolize the electoral space, engineer grand electoral fraud, as well as hatch a deliberate plot to move the process towards a one party dominant democratic order in favour of the ruling party[3].
3.2
3.1 INTRODUCTION
In the context of a weak electoral body, a perverted electoral process and undemocratic political parties, the stage is set for flawed elections. Thus, the 1999 and 2003 elections, like virtually all the preceding elections in Nigeria’s post-colonial history, were classic cases of electoral fraud. In broad terms, there have been two kinds of elections in Nigeria’s post-colonial history. These are the ‘transition’ and ‘consolidation’ elections[1]. The transition elections are those organized by a departing political authority, which include those organized by the departing colonial authorities in 1959, and those organized by military regimes in 1979, 1993 (aborted) and 1999. Consolidation elections are those organized by a civilian regime and are intended to consolidate civil rule. These include the 1964/65, 1983 and 2003 elections. While virtually all these elections have been contested, the elections of 1983 and 2003 stand out as the most corrupt and fraudulent. The shared characteristics of all elections in Nigeria, include massive electoral frauds, the conception and practice of politics as warfare, the lack of continuity in the political platforms used by members of the political class, high levels of opportunism and thus a low level of commitment to the different variants of right-wing political ideologies that characterize the political class, the objectification of politics, and the mobilization of ethnic identities as the basis for defining the legitimacy of claims to political power[2].
Elections in Nigeria have been fraught with violence, massive rigging, voters intimidation and fraud. There is also a deliberate attempt by the ruling party to contrive and monopolize the electoral space, engineer grand electoral fraud, as well as hatch a deliberate plot to move the process towards a one party dominant democratic order in favour of the ruling party[3].
3.2