Goodluck Jonathan begs for peace in Edo governorship election

Former President Goodluck Jonathan called on all political actors and stakeholders to deepen the nation’s democracy by prioritising peace and security in the Edo governorship election on Saturday.

“It is encouraging that civil rule has endured in the Fourth Republic for 25 years, but we should remind our people that democracy loses its value when citizens cannot exercise their political choices in a free and fair atmosphere,” he said.

Mr Jonathan also charged state institutions in managing the election process to maintain neutrality, create a level playing field, and ensure free and fair elections.

He said that the Edo election placed a moral burden on state agencies, especially the police and the Independent National Electoral Commission, to rise to their constitutional responsibilities as independent arbiters in Nigeria’s democratic process.

The former president said, “Security agencies must conduct themselves in optimal neutrality and desist from actions that could alter the setting for a level-playing field and compromise the credibility of the electoral process.

“On its part, the INEC must live up to expectations as an unbiased umpire and inspire confidence in all actors through a transparent voting process. There is no doubt that loss of confidence in an election encourages political disputes, social unrest, voter apathy, increased polarisation and other far-reaching consequences that could undermine development and democratic consolidation”.

Mr Jonathan added, “For democracy to endure, our leadership recruitment process must be devoid of all forms of manipulation and state institutions have the obligation to guarantee peaceful, credible and transparent elections.

“That way, citizens will be able to elect leaders of their choice who they will entrust with the legitimacy to deliver good governance, peace and prosperity.”

(NAN)