10 Minimal Ways to Combat Rigging In 2007

by Mobolaji E. Aluko, PhD
alukome@gmail.com

Burtonsville , MD , USA
December 28, 2006 

The upcoming 2007 Elections will again be another "watershed" in Nigeria 's history: the signs are all over the place.  The stakes are so high that individuals and political parties will attempt to rig in ways unimaginable even in the 2003 elections, which were adjudged by most Nigeria watchers to be the most rigged set in Nigeria 's history; wherein  a Court of the land even cancelled hundreds of thousands of numbers of votes counted in the presidential elections.

So what to do to avert – or at least reduce – rigging in 2007 to the greatest extent possible?

Compatriots, we suggest  that EVERY INTEREST GROUP (political parties, non-governmental organizations and other civil society types, etc.) must, BEFORE, ON and AFTER  ELECTION DAY, do the following 10 MINIMAL steps outlined below. 

Before Election Day

1. Ensure as MANY of their members as possible REGISTER to vote (VOTER MOBILIZATION).  Whether it is manual or electronic, validation or re-validation: just register to vote!

2. Ensure that INEC PUBLISHES the names of all registered voters, by state, local government and ward long enough BEFORE Election Day (according to the Electoral Law, this should be by the end of February 2007); ENSURE that their members check that their names are on the register; randomly test whether there are some "phantom" names on the register; and that those who do not find their names complain formally. Interest groups should be prepared to use the courts on behalf of their members. (VOTER AWARENESS)

3. Ensure that INEC publishes the LOCATIONS of all the polling stations ahead of time, and that their members know these locations. (VOTER EDUCATION).
 
 4. Ensure that we have on file the interest groups' POLLING AGENTS and POLLING AGENT ASSISTANTS - their names, pictures and IN PARTICULAR signatures (in the case of political parties) on file. [AGENT AUTHENTICATION] Note that we should have at 2 or 3 people per polling station.

5. Within 48 – 96 hours of Election Day, a BLANKET information blitz or saturation on voter education and vote protection steps should be carried out.  [VOTER EDUCATION]

6. Vigorously resist and ultimately reject any EMERGENCY police, army or electoral law that institutes CURFEW on Election Day.   Curfew is often instituted with the excuse that it reduces multiple voting. However, it is in fact a recipe for disabling the possibility of monitoring of the electoral process by as many people as possible. Instead of a curfew, a reasonable number of people -   say 50 - may be specified to be allowed within 100 meters of polling station, who can be periodically be replaced by others who may also wish to monitor. ANY CITIZEN should be allowed to be within 200 meters of any polling booths. [VOTING PROCESS VOTER-AUTHENTICATION]

On Election Day
 
7. Ensure that, as allowed by the Electoral law, people are present when results are announced (record the announcement using audio tape) and displayed on BOARDS (take a picture of the boards using a digital camera). [VOTING PROCESS DOCUMENTATION].   We should be prepared to tender these in courts in the event of disputes.
 
 8. Ensure that the party's polling agents RELAY by cell phone the results' information, and if possible, a digital picture of the result display board. [VOTE COMMUNICATION]
A NEWSPAPER of the day should be photographed along with the board for date authentication.

9. As soon as possible, ensure that we some central offices are compiling all the results coming in - particularly the result display boards. [VOTING RESULTS SELF-COMPILATION] 

After Election Day

10. Ensure that there are rapid disclaimer teams in place in case any OFFICIAL results negate what has been compiled, or are bloated beyond the recorded number of voters. [RAPID ANTI-RIGGING INFORMATION DEPLOYMENT] 

Epilogue

Of course, these steps can be supplemented by others, but we have to start thinking very deeply, my fellow citizens.

Will these steps completely eliminate rigging in 2007?  Probably not, but we must not be fatalistic and leave matters completely to chance!

Robot  # 1 | 28.12.2006 11:55

Compatriots, we suggest that EVERY INTEREST GROUP (political parties, non-governmental orga...Read the full article.

Tunde meee  # 2 | 28.12.2006 13:04

This is a good effort all in the area of what is expected of the voters. All these will amount to nothing if there is no resilience on the part of the voters. We should all be prepared to sit by the road side for as long as our stolen mandate remained with the "robber". It may be hard to do but the end result is quite delicious. PROTEST DOES NOT HAVE TO BE VIOLENT TO BE EFFECTIVE.

katampe  # 3 | 28.12.2006 13:44

=Tunde meee;146038>This is a good effort all in the area of what is expected of the voters. All these will amount to nothing if there is no resilience on the part of the voters. Tunde Mee said: We should all be prepared to sit by the road side for as long as our stolen mandate remained with the "robber". It may be hard to do but the end result is quite delicious. PROTEST DOES NOT HAVE TO BE VIOLENT TO BE EFFECTIVE. I say 'insightful.' Commentary An elderly man in Ibadan gave me an insight on election rigging. The man, one of the heirs to the Olubadan stool, nice and pretty well educated, he spoke on his experience as an electoral officer up North. He was asked to stay clear of any attempt at stopping rigging if he wanted to leave the North alive in the sixties.Up North, rigging is politics.The more money you have the better your chances.Why do you think Abiola won the elections - He rigged heavily , he understood the game pretty well. As simplistic as that sounds - it is one of the reasons why many principled politicians continue to lose elections. Bolaji, I must confess I haven't bothered to read your theories here for some reasons.One of them is my impression that you have a jaundiced view of the Nigerian nation. And you are so engrossed, sometimes in idealistic pursuits that have no bearing on the reality facing our nation. For example, assuming the parties won't rig - what are the ideas of moving the country forward put forward by the parties? If there are ideas, they have not been given much advertisement. Furthermore, few folks understand the role of government in their lives to participate in any voting exercise? Many haven't seen the effect of government in their lives, so they can't relate to some of these issues of election participation, my broda. If and when they choose to participate - it is because they are being motivated by ghana must go. I have lived in many parts of Nigeria to better understand,most poor folks don't care and can't be bothered.There are so many folks that care less about good government , except for the 'dole' they receive to vote. Please, why don't we look for some other things to occupy us than these articles. We know Nigeria lacks the capacity to organise a free and fair election. And it also lacks the capacity in every aspect of its national life - like security, infrastructure, manpower.The ministry that has the most investment in the Nigerian economy with all the money it has, hasn't stopped vandalization of its pipelines.The army that receives one of the highest votes during our yearly budgets can't stop ammunition dumps from explosions. What makes you think INEC can do anything - the Director of Finance of INEC, late Pastor Akanni was found to have assets worth billions after his death.It took the squabbles of his wives to uncover he had these assets. So, what do you think IWU is worth millions? If there is anything certain in life after death and taxes - it is election rigging in Nigeria. And believe me, nothing will happen!

Bolaji Aluko  # 4 | 28.12.2006 14:21

Katampe: It is an egg-and-chicken problem: people and parties don't put forward platforms - or do not have their platforms taken seriously - because they feel they don't matter as those platforms are pushed aside by RIGGING. So it appears to me that the best way to eventually make platforms matter is to reduce or eliminate rigging. I see no other way, otherwise the claim is that the present sordid situation will go on for ever. I understand the skepticism, but I do not accept cynicism. Bolaji Aluko

docokwy  # 5 | 28.12.2006 15:54

Adefarati is AD presidential candidate By Maxwell Oditta, Assistant Politics Editor The Alliance for Democracy (AD) has picked former Governor of Ondo State, Adebayo Adefarati as its presidential candidate in the 2007 elections. It has consequently sent his name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for that purpose. It was gathered that Adefarati’s choice was endorsed without any dissension by the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party headed by Mojiseoluwa Akinfenwa, who is the National Chairman of the INEC-recognised faction of the party. The other faction which has Michael Koleoso as its National Chairman has gone into an alliance with the Action Congress (AC) on which platform its members eyeing elective positions would contest in the 2007 elections. But the Akinfenwa faction said it would not go into alliance with any other political party. It believes that it can go it alone and win the 2007 elections. Already, two governorship aspirants in Lagos State, Jimi Agbaje and Hakeem Gbajabiamila, have to the AD and other party leaders are working at defecting from the AC to the AD. AD leaders argued that Adefarati, being a South-Westener and a Yoruba would not be a barrier to his emergence as the President of the country after the 2007 polls. The mandate being enjoyed by Obasanjo, they said, was the Nigerian mandate, which was given to himto foster national reconciliation and unity after a traumatic period of national political crisis. It was not necessarily a Yoruba mandate. Adefarati’s choice came barely a fortnight after the Koleoso group held a National Convention in Lagos where they expelled Adefarati and Akinfenwa from the party, purportedly on the recommendation of their wards. The Adefarati group retaliated by expelling two former members, the National Chairman of the AC, Bisi Akande and the Lagos State Governor, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, from the party. ................................................................................................................................ :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :evil: :evil: :cry: :cry: