Politicians, INEC responsible for poor conduct of elections in Nigeria – Kaigama

The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Diocese, Ignatius Kaigama, on Sunday blamed politicians, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and other stakeholders for the poor conduct of elections in the country.

In his homily at Our Lady Queen of Peace Pro-Cathedral, in Abuja, Kaigama said the ways elections were conducted in Nigeria, raised doubts on whether people’s votes count at all.

The cleric said the quest to win by hook or crook and the winner takes all syndrome, was the reason why a sitting governor’s party won all seats in a state’s local government election.

He said the Nigeria electoral system laid the foundation for electoral violence and the extravagant use of power and resources.

The Catholic Archbishop urged Nigerians to learn from how Peter in the Bible led a group to elect the successor of Judas Iscariot.

He said: “The manner of election demonstrated that they relied on scripture and prayer to find a replacement for Judas.

“The election was based purely on merit, the person was to be a consistent follower of Jesus, throughout Jesus’ ministry, up to the day of His ascension.

”Two men were put forward. There was no lobbying; internal democracy was at play.

”The group prayed for guidance, proclaimed their trust in God, and went on to cast lots and the lot fell on Matthias who became one of the Apostles.

“There are lessons from the election of Matthias for contemporary politics in Africa: election must be peaceful, without electoral manipulation, partiality or ungodly conduct.”

Kaigama stressed the need for the positive use of media in conducting free and fair elections and ensuring peace in the society.

The cleric added: “As Pope Francis said in his message, ‘the risk of misinformation being spread on social media has become evident to everyone.

“We have known for some time that news and even images can be easily manipulated for any number of reasons.

“In communicating, we must ensure objectivity, respect for human rights and dignity, the common good, avoiding hostility and confusion.

“There must be a responsible and accountable use of the media or else we breed anarchy and chaos.”