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| Dr.. In his house during the interview.. |
The violence that marred the just concluded rerun
parliamentary national and state assembly elections in
Rivers state got all Nigerians talking. There have been
several criticisms accompanying the exercise form
concerned Nigerians, especially those that are not
politically affiliated.
Vincent Ehiabhi, in an exclusive interview with Barrister
(Dr) Anthony Orunkoya, beamed the search light on some
of the crucial factors militating against a peaceful and
smooth conduct of election in the country.
Can you introduce yourself so that Nigerians can know
you?
I am Barrister (Dr) Anthony Orunkoya, the National President
of Movement for Survival of Democracy and Africa President
of World Alliance Against Terrorism, Violence and Inhuman
Treatment.
What do you think of the violence that accompanied
Rivers state rerun elections?
Our groups monitored elections in the past in Nigeria and we
took pain to also monitor the recent rerun election in Rivers
State. It is really shameful that at this age our politicians
and even some electorates allow themselves to be used and
subscribe to violence.
Why is there so much violence in the South-South region
during elections?
Political public offices or positions are so attractive in
Nigeria hence everybody wants to occupy such positions at
all cost. The violence that played out in the rerun election in
Rivers State is indeed a reflection of the decay in our
society. There is high decline in moral value. Brother now kill
brother, sister now sell sister for politics. No more moral
conscience. For a little naira youths are ready to kill for
politicians who do not care for their future. As a result of the
agitation for resource control in past, the Nigeria South-
South youths took to arms and many militant groups were
formed. These groups were empowered by politicians with
arms which they use for smuggling crude oil and protecting
their local territories on the high sea even as they agitate for
resource control. Premised on the afore stated, the youths in
the South-South region of Nigeria most especially Rivers
State have easy access to arms, hence it was easy for them
to unleash terror at the behest of their political godfathers.
The leadership of PDP and APC are to be blamed for the
violence that characterized the rerun election in Rivers State.
The two major political parties threatened violence before the
election through their conduct and utterances. By their
utterances they prepared the ground for violence.
How can the law effectively curb election violence?
I strongly suggest that our criminal code should be
strengthened and make political violence felonious offence.
Barrister (Dr) Anthony Orunkoya revealed what caused
Rivers state rerun election violence.
How can the government stop election violence, before,
during and after elections?
The federal government security agencies were not proactive
enough to checkmate the violence. It is my opinion that
political public offices or positions should be made less
attractive. The huge salaries and allowances attached to
such offices should be cut off. Those that could not achieve
anything in their private lives suddenly become millionaires
upon occupying public positions. People are desperate to
occupy public office because they see it as easy road to
wealth. Politicians who make public statements to incite
violence should be banned from politics. The Nigeria police
should be strengthened through recruitment of more officers
and proper training most especially in areas of political
violence control. There should be more efforts in educating
the people on electoral matters. INEC and other agencies
should synergize in that regard. INEC has a department
charged with that responsibility but that department is not
active. The various federal and state government agencies
on public enlightenment need to do more work to educate the
electorates.
What is your advice to residents who live in violent prone
areas during elections?
I advise those who live in election violence prone areas to be
vigilant and report suspicious movement to the police
because the police and other security agencies can only
work with information.
What advice do you have for INEC against subsequent
elections?
INEC should be neutral in the conduct of election. Attempt by
INEC officials to manipulate election process in favour of a
candidate often trigger violent reactions from electorate.
INEC should also improve in its planning, logistics and
execution of election. In recent times INEC has displayed
ineptitude in execution of elections. INEC officials and
sensitive electoral materials often arrive late to the polling
units, electoral officers also compromise their positions,
election often start late and most electorates’ names are
usually not found in voters register. These seemingly
ineptitude on the part of INEC are factors capable of causing
electoral violence and to a very large extent also triggered the
violence in Rivers State rerun election.
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