INEC warns politicians against promoting electoral violence

    
The Independent National Electoral Commission has called on members of the political class to “refrain from making pronouncements that overheat the polity and incite youth violence” before the 2015 general elections.

The commission, which said it was “making efforts aimed at curbing pre-and post-election violence,” also called on stakeholders in the electoral process to play their roles diligently and robustly.

The chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega, according to the Volume 1  N0. 609 of the commission’s Bulletin, e-mailed to journalists on Monday, stated this in a paper entitled ‘Curbing the rate of pre-and post-election violence in Nigeria’, while declaring open the Youth Against Election Violence ceremony, organised by Commonwealth Youth Council held in Abuja.

The INEC Chairman, who was represented by a Commissioner, Gladys Nwafor, said, “Over the years our elections have been dogged by violence cutting across the entire country. The violence that attended 2011 elections is still fresh in our minds. Once the process is free and fair, politicians must learn to accept defeat gallantly and those who win must be generous in their victory.

“To ameliorate violence, the commission has introduced transparent measures in order to elicit the trust and support of stakeholders. It has increased its enlightenment with stakeholders such as the media, Civil Society Organisations, politicians and political parties.”

Jega identified some possible sources of pre-and post-election violence to include ignorance and low civic education; lack of internal democracy in political parties; do-or-die attitude of politicians to politics; thuggery to achieve political victory and inflammatory statements by politicians.

Others are unwillingness to accept election results; heavy monetisation of the electoral process by politicians and attempts to compromise election officials.

While reaffirming the role of the commission and its staff, he added that it was paramount to remain transparent in all engagements and strive to resolve tensions, suspicion and speculations that could lead to election violence