UPHOLDING CREDIBLE ELECTION AS WE MARK WORLD DAY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE
The
last time I checked, February 20 of every year remained the World Day of Social
Justice. This implies that, today, the world over is commemorating the said day.
The World Summit for Social Development was held in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1995
and resulted in the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action regarding
Social Justice. Nearly ten years later, precisely in February 2005, the United
Nations’ Member States reviewed the Declaration when they gathered at a session
of the Commission for Social Development in New York, U.S.A.
Subsequently, on 26th November 2007, the UN General Assembly
named February 20 as the annual World Day of Social Justice; the day was
scheduled to be first observed in the year 2009. On that day, the General
Assembly urged the leaders of the various Member States to allow their citizens
to exercise their civic responsibilities as well as grant them their respective
entitlements irrespective of background, status, or age.
An election is a process in which people
or the public choose a person or group of persons to hold an official position
through voting. In the same vein; a credible election, in a concise term, could
be described as an election in which no one is disenfranchised and no iota of
injustice is employed; it can equally be described as an election where each of
the electorate is entitled to equal right, and no foul play is witnessed.
On the other hand, a social justice is a situation in which individuals
or citizens of a certain society are allowed to fulfill their civil obligations
as well as receive what is due for them. Social justice, which is a justice in
terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a
society, assigns rights and duties in the institutions of a given society which
enables people to receive the basic benefits and burdens of cooperation.
Considering the significance of social justice, no doubt, it is only by
the acknowledgement of its existence, that, a free, fair and credible election
would be guaranteed in any country or organization. This is why thorough
practice of social justice is required by any nation that claims to possess a
good number of true democrats.
It was Abraham Lincoln who said in 19th May 1856, that, “The
ballot is stronger than the bullet.” Furthermore, in his first inaugural
address as the President of the United States of America (U.S.A) in March 4,
1861, he said, “This country with its institutions belongs to the people who
inhabit it. Whenever they grow weary of the existing government, they can
exercise their constitutional right of amending it, or their revolutionary
right to dismember it or overthrow it.”
To this end, it is high time
the aspirants of any forthcoming election in Nigeria started playing politics of
vision to be accompanied by mission with the view that the electorate are the
major determinant in every election regardless of its nature/level, rather than
the usual alleged believe that the polls do not require the participation of
the people for an election to take place, or be successful.
On their part, the electorate
ought to comprehend that the future of this country lies in their bare hands by
ensuring that they concentrate on the real visions of the respective aspirants
instead of laying emphasis on his/her ethnic, social, political, or religious
affiliation. They must endeavour to focus on the aspirant’s antecedents and
background, contrary to the ongoing tradition where aspirants are scrutinized
based on his affiliations.
In his words John Quincy Adams said, “Always vote for principle; though
you may vote alone, but you shall live to cherish the sweetest reflection that
your vote is never lost.” Also in his speech, Woody Allen stated, “We stand
today at a crossroad: one path leads to despair and utter hopelessness while
the other leads to total extinction. Let us hope we have the wisdom to make the
right choice.”
The Independent National Electoral
commission (INEC), which stands as the sole umpire for elections in Nigeria as
well as the various states’ electoral commissions, should in their corporate
capacities not attempt to compromise the confidence majority of Nigerians have
in them. By acknowledging the fact that many Nigerians have become sceptical
over the effectiveness of elections in Nigeria due to the porosity of the ones
conducted in the past, it is therefore the responsibility of the INEC to prove
to the doubtful electorate, beyond reasonable doubts, that subsequent elections
in their respective jurisdictions would be the best of its kind in the history
of the country. Such measure if taken seriously would help tremendously to
eliminate the enormous apathy witnessed among the electorate.
As the world celebrates the World
Day of Social Justice, there is need for all concerned, particularly electoral stakeholders
such as the civil society, religious bodies and the mass media at all levels,
to strengthen the ongoing awareness on the need to exercise free, fair and
credible polls in the country. As regards this, we are expected to continually
preach the gospel of “One man, one vote”, and the need for every Nigerian to
participate actively at the polls.
We shouldn’t forget that, for us to actualize the future we dream of,
all hands must surely be on deck; else, we will end up actualizing a goal we
never wished to behold. To this end, I appeal to Imolites to always have the
interest of the state at heart whenever they are prepared to cast their votes
at the polls. We must note that if we failed to do the needful, we shall all
live to exclaim “Had I known” which invariably comes at last. Think about it!
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