Stop celebrating thugs for roles played during elections – GEJ

Former President Goodluck Jonathan in a write-up as a guest columnist with the THISDAY Newspapers says that any society where thugs become role models for singular roles they play during elections is doomed to fail.

In the article which was titled, “COVID-19, Democracy and Task of Nation Building” the former Nigerian President said: “I should point out that a society where thugs become role models is doomed to fail.”

He continued by saying “I am also convinced that electronic voting will eliminate the worrisome issue of massive rigging and violence during elections because it will limit human presence during voting.”

He further stated that “It will bring an end to incessant deployment of miscreants during elections because there will be no room for ballot box stuffing or snatching. It is sad that in some places, these miscreants are even celebrated, because of the ignoble roles they play during elections.”

“Holding regular elections alone does not really define democracy or guarantee good governance.”

“We need to work on how to strengthen the pillars of democracy where they are weak, and enhance political stability across the continent.”

He however revealed that “You can always tell how credible or otherwise a democratic process has been from the level of protests, violence and the number of post-election litigations. For Africa to make more progress towards building liberal democracies, we should first take deliberate measures to strengthen the independence of the electoral management bodies.”

“We therefore have no reason to fail our people in democracy. True democracy guarantees free, fair elections and peaceful transfer of power from one administration to another and it is within our capacity to achieve that.”

He assured that “Before the end of this year, five nations in West Africa alone are scheduled to hold Presidential elections. They include Ghana, Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Niger. That for me is a plus and an important step in the right direction.”