EDO AND ONDO GUBER POLLS: The Roles of Youths In Curbing Electoral Violence….By Amb.Sunny Irakpo

As the gubernatorial elections in Edo and Ondo states draw closer, there has been a lot of apprehension in different parts of the country amongst the political gladiators in the mainstream political parties which has led to anxieties in the political arena amongst the party faithfuls and the electorates in the past three months even up to this day as the elections intensify. The elections have generated a lot of noise especially the Edo elections which will take place this weekend. Many public affairs analysts and public commentators have had their opinions on the elections, some have predicted victory for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), while some others have predicted victory for the All Progressives Congress(APC) in the two states whose elections come up on September 19th and October 10th, 2020 respectively.
As a peace-loving and youth-friendly organization, SILEC Initiatives have made it a point of duty to sensitize the youths in our collective efforts to curb youth violence and electoral malpractices at the polling units, which are mostly carried out by sponsored rogues allegedly orchestrated by our desperate politicians.
Since 1999, most of our elections at the local, state and federal levels have been marred by electoral malpractices in the form of ballot snatching, voters intimidation, vote buying, killing, fighting, maiming, under-aged voting and even killing of electoral officers e.t.c We have taken it upon ourselves to examine some of the social issues that usually spur our able-bodied youths to be used as thugs by desperate politicians to wreck havocs in their quests to “win” elections by all the means. Some of the factors are:
-Drug abuse
-Poverty
-Lack of proper education
-Lack of political orientation/sensitization
unemployment amongst youths e.t.c
In our quest to entrench sanity in the electoral process, we have pitched tent with other sister organizations and stakeholders to sensitise all Edo and Ondo youths to make themselves unavailable to be used as thugs and gangsters on the days of the elections. We have seen cases where youths whose lives have been shattered by the consumption of hard drugs being easily recruited as election thugs and some eventually losing their lives or sustaining life-threatening injuries in the process of stealing ballot boxes and some shot to death in the process.Some persons have attributed the cruel acts to poverty and lack of good parental upbringing.
During the last gubernatorial polls in Delta, we advocated and created awareness in different communities, educating the youths on their roles in nation building and that they shouldn’t be carried away by the peanuts that they are being offered to cause mayhem during electioneering periods. Many yielded to our counsels and have turned away from that cycle of thuggery and gangsterism to become useful to themselves and the society.
So our appeal to all Edo and Ondo electorates is that as they go to the polls this weekend and in less than a month time, they should abide by the following:
– VOTE AND NOT FIGHT
– DON’T MAKE YOURSELF AVAILABLE TO BE USED TO SNATCH BALLOT BOX
-THEY SHOULD NOT INTIMIDATE ANY ELECTORATE THAT WANTS TO EXERCISE HIS/HER FRANCHISE
– PARTY AGENTS SHOULD NOT INDUCE VOTERS ON THE QUEUE
– SOCIAL DISTANCING, WEARING OF FACE MASK AND OTHER COVID-19 GUIDELINES MUST BE OBSERVED
– THE YOUTHS SHOULD COME OUT EN MASSE TO VOTE THEIR CONSCIENCE WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOUR.
Together, we shall collectively consolidate on our nascent democracy and strive to make it grow tremendously.
We equally appeal to all political parties and members to play according to the rules.
The politicians that have signed peace accords should abide by the rules and we strongly voice out that our youths should not be placed on drugs in order to make them vulnerable to immoral acts. The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) should uphold it’s standards of neutrality by conducting free, fair and credible elections for Edo and Ondo state.
Together, the Nigerian Project shall work out fine.
Long live Edo state
Long live Ondo state
Long live Silec Initiatives
Long live Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Amb. Sunny Irakpo,
President/Founder,
SILEC Initiatives.
U.S Exchange Alumni (IVLP)
E-mail : silecinitiatives@gmail.com