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The Ekiti State governorship election holds today. To ensure a credible exercise, President Bola Tinubu has charged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies and political parties to work towards a peaceful, free and fair poll, warning that democracy fails when citizens lose confidence in the electoral process. The President gave the advice in his Democracy Day address to the nation on June 12.
INEC has assured Nigerians of conducting a free, fair and credible election. As proof of its commitment to the success of the poll, the commission had, by Thursday, commenced the movement of sensitive election materials to the 16 local government areas of the state. The materials include ballot papers, Bimodal Voter Accreditation System machines and voter registers, among other election components required for the conduct of the poll.
Similarly, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has deployed 10,000 personnel, with the police promising of activating a comprehensive election security framework to safeguard the poll. Equally, the Court of Appeal has constituted the Ekiti State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, while the Nigerian Air Force confirmed the successful airlift of sensitive electoral materials to support the election.
Major political parties and candidates involved in the poll have also expressed readiness for the exercise, having concluded their rallies. Ekiti voters are expected to elect a governor from among the candidates fielded by the political parties contesting the poll across the state’s 16 local government areas, 177 wards and 2,445 polling units.
The total number of registered voters in Ekiti State is 1,059,360. Out of this figure, 1,028,929 (97.13 per cent) have collected their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs), while 30,431 (2.87 per cent) of the PVCs are uncollected. Fourteen of 22 registered political parties will participate in the election.
Though 14 political parties are squaring up for the contest, the election is essentially a three-horse race involving three major contenders — incumbent Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Wole Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). Each of the candidates has his manifesto and plan of action if elected.
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All eyes are on the INEC to do the needful, which is delivering free, fair and credible election. Today’s outing in Ekiti is a litmus test for INEC ahead of the 2027 general election. The INEC national chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, must get it right, given his earlier promise to deliver the best election in Nigerian history. He should use Ekiti poll to demonstrate that pledge.
Nigerians do not expect anything short of a free and fair election in Ekiti. The stakes are high, just as the election is important to the parties involved and will be keenly contested. INEC should ensure that the votes count. Prof. Amupitan should keep to his promise of maintaining a level playing ground for the contestants. Let the electoral umpire remain the impartial arbiter that the constitution envisages it to be.
The challenge of Nigeria’s electoral system has been the opacity of the exercise, which gives room for rigging, violence and manipulation of the voting processes. Most of the past elections in the country had fallen into the ugly trap, thereby casting doubts on the credibility of the outcome and exposing the country to ridicule.
Therefore, the election in Ekiti offers an opportunity for INEC to redeem its image that has remained dented since the shoddy conduct of the 2023 general election. The commission needs to prove that it has learned its lessons by delivering transparent election in Ekiti. Let the outcome of Ekiti poll be a reflection of the wishes of the people. The conduct of the election and its outcome will go a long way in rekindling the confidence of Nigerians in INEC or further erode the reputation it presently has. The pledge of neutrality by the INEC Chairman is a welcome development. Ekiti voters do not expect anything less from him.
The successful conduct of the poll requires commitment and cooperation of the critical stakeholders in the state, apart from the INEC. In this regard, we call on the political parties, the candidates and their supporters to play by the rule. They should eschew violence, vote-buying, voter inducement and other electoral infractions.
Winning the contest should not be a ‘do-or-die’ affair. The election is not worth the blood of any Ekiti indigene or resident. Let the wishes of the people be respected. Security agencies deployed for electoral duty should discharge such with utmost patriotism and remain apolitical. They must maintain a position of absolute neutrality and provide adequate security for all. Let the people vote according to their conscience.
