It is another opportunity for INEC to test its preparedness for the 2023 general election

Come Saturday, the people of Ekiti State will go to the polls to elect a successor to the incumbent Governor Kayode Fayemi. Unlike in the past when bloodletting and large-scale thuggery dominated such exercise, the campaigns have so far been largely peaceful. While we commend this development, we also hope that the police and other law enforcement agencies will be professional in their conduct before, during and after the polls are closed. No matter how well the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) prepares, once the security agencies are partisans or compromised, there are usually problems.

This election is particularly important because, as YIAGA Africa notes, “it will be the first election to be conducted under the Electoral Act 2022 and the second state-wide election to be conducted using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).” We also agree that the election will be a litmus test to assess the role of security agencies, “and the commitment of political parties to electoral integrity, stakeholder engagement and citizen participation.”

It is also particularly noteworthy that the election is coming shortly after the conclusion of the congresses and primaries of the political parties and the nomination of their candidates for various offices for the 2023 general election. Incidentally, while there are 16 local government areas in Ekiti State, there are also 16 candidates on the ballot, representing different political parties. But the contest may just be between Abiodun Oyebanji of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Olabisi Kolawole of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Governor Segun Oni who is flying the flag of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Other contenders and their parties have not been visible in the campaigns.

Despite the posturing by principal actors, one fact about the coming election in Ekiti State which also is true with such election elsewhere in the country, is that it is not going to be fought on ideological platforms. None of the political parties whose candidates are jostling for power can be described as ideology-driven by any stretch of the imagination. For that reason, it is important that the candidates allow the electorate to decide their destiny for the next four years and there should be no room for coercion and violence.

Meanwhile, there is great optimism that the new electoral law will help to restore the confidence of Nigerians in the ballot box. Section 50 now gives legal backing for electronic transmission of election results. Other significant breakthroughs include the empowerment of INEC to review results declared under duress, determination of over-voting by tribunals based on total number of accredited voters instead of the number of registered voters, legal backing for smart card readers and other voter accreditation technologies.

However, as we have always stated, an improved electoral system does not only rest on laws. It is good that INEC and many stakeholders have invested a lot of time and energy in getting the electoral act passed. But the success of the gubernatorial election in Ekiti will depend not only on the enabling law but also the conduct of INEC officials. Much more importantly, it will signpost what will happen at the Osun State gubernatorial election next month and the 2023 general election. That is why INEC and other stakeholders must get it right. The message is simple: If the commission can conduct the Ekiti State polls without hitches, then Professor Mahmud Yakubu would have proved that the commission has indeed learned useful lessons for the future. INEC particularly needs to use Saturday’s election to test its preparedness for future elections.

At the end, the choice of who governs Ekiti for the next four years is that of the residents of the state to make. May the best candidate win.

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