As part of preparations for the 2023 general elections in Nigeria, Building Blocks for Peace Foundation in collaboration with the National Orientation Agency, with funding support from the Embassy of United States in Abuja organised a one day multi-stakeholders’ dialogue bringing together all actors connected to elections and election management, peace and security in Nigeria.
The meeting which brought together over 150 participants from across Nigeria was designed to discuss the preparedness for the 2023 elections and identify stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities for peaceful conduct of the elections. The dialogue was also very important as it helped to build trust and foster collaboration between youth and non-youth actors and ensure meaningful engagement of youth in the electoral process.
Why the Dialogue?
Since gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria’s electoral processes have been arguably posited to be mostly violent in the West Africa sub region and these violent occurrences take place before, during and after the elections. This is backed up by increasing intolerance and ruthless contest for political office during the present democratic dispensation, characterised by the use of illegally possessed weapons and arms by politicians and their supporters.
The previously held 2011 general elections, for instance, featured as a major electioneering era in Nigeria as it saw more violence owing to the fact that it led to the loss of more lives and properties of mostly young persons.
With strong argument that the role of young people in Nigeria in matters relating to elections have been particularly dynamic, in that, they have been tagged as both perpetrators and at the same time victims, the multi-stakeholders’ dialogue traced the susceptibility of young men and young women to electoral violence to poverty, unemployment, eroding societal values which make them easy recruits by the political class for attacks on political opponents.
Towards a Peaceful 2023 Election; What Young People and Stakeholders Should Do
Nigeria’s 2023 general elections is geared towards being one of the most vital events in the history of the country as it presents the nation the opportunity to set the country on its desired path of progress and prosperity.
Considering the political and socioeconomic realities of the country, as elections drew nearer, there are salient roles which youths and other institutions in the country are expected to perform viz;
Youths must be agents of PEACE
Youths have the responsibility to make 2023 elections violent-free by resisting the temptation of politicians to use them to cause violence and disrupt the elections. Youths are encouraged to show an exigent need and participate in peacebuilding interventions so that the elections would not end up like past years; 2011, 2015, and 2019. This is because history has proven that elections held during the said times were plagued with mistrusts and violence specifically between the parties which are the main contenders of the elections among ethnic, tribal, and religious groups.
Institutions should mobilise their members in numbers
Achieving peaceful elections is a collective responsibility of all stakeholders, including the Media, Security Agencies, Politicians, Independent National Electoral Commission, Civil Society Organisations, Religious Organisations, Traditional Institutions, and other Relevant Organisations in-charge of awareness creation like the National Orientation Agency and Federal Ministry of Information. Thus, they are all expected to mobilise their members and subjects respectively for effective participation in the 2023 general elections.
Young men and young women must exercise their franchise peacefully
Nigerian youths should take advantage of their numerical strength to elect quality and best candidates that would ensure youth development and empowerment.
Beyond going to the polls to cast their vote, the Nigeria youths are further encouraged to ensure that their votes count. They are to do so by hanging around the voting units to engage in the vote counting process; this is in a bid to protect their rights as full-fledged citizens.
Security personnel must show high sense of professionalism and impartiality
Security agencies must avoid bias and professional misconduct but must provide maximum security for all and ensure that electoral offenders are arrested and prosecuted.
Active participation of CSOs
Civil Society Organizations should actively engage the public through sensitization and mobilisation for elections.
Recommendations
The following are some of the other recommendations from the dialogue:
Stakeholders appealed to all political actors, their supporters, and youths to embrace social media networks as a tool to educate the general public on electoral processes and to also constructively engage political candidates on issues regarding campaigns and programmes.
All stakeholders must come together to make sure that all efforts put towards the success of the 2023 general elections do not become futile.
INEC should make sure to be strict with the application of their rules at all polling centres across the 36 states and FCT; in that case, INEC must ensure that party agents stay far away from the voting cubicles and voters should not be allowed to exercise their franchise with their mobile devices in order to curb vote buying.
Youths must make sure to abide by the laws as their active and non-violent participation during the election serve as critical tools for the growth and development of the country’s socio-economic and political sectors. Young Nigerians must convert their demographic dividends into peace dividends.
Young people must shun fake news, conflict-ridden contents, and hate speech both online and offline during the election period and beyond to avert conflict across the board.
The general public should be properly enlightened on the need to value their votes which will in a wide range take a course in the underdevelopment of their communities and lack of infrastructure, to avert vote buying and also reduce voter apathy.
The meeting was attended by the Ambassdor of US to Nigeria, DG, National Orientation Agency, His Royal Highness, Ona of Abaji , DG, National Youth Service Corps among others.
Written by
Anthonia Folashade
BBFORPEACE Communications