Human rights activist, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), has raised the alarm that the forthcoming 2027 general elections may not be free and fair.
He said the current socio-political events give credence to his postulations that the elections may not be free and fair.
He decried that some politicians allegedly are involving in killings for political advancement.
He alleged that humongous amount of money were spent in the past Osun governorship election and some other past elections for vote buying, adding that such a trend portend danger for Nigeria’s democracy.
According to him, what Nigeria currently is practising is a mockery of democracy.
He spoke as the Chairman of the Occasion at the 25th Mike Okonkwo Annual Lecture in Lagos on Thursday. The theme of the lecture was: ‘Democracy at the crossroads:Electoral credibility, judicial integrity and the future of Nigeria.”
He urged the people to defend democracy and hold their leaders accountable.
Falana said: “Democracy is said to be at a crossroads in Nigeria, because the 2027 general election will provide the rare opportunity when a crucial decision is required to be made in the life of the nation. Many of us are not very confident that the election will be free and fair, having regard to some of the signs that are all over the place.
“It is indisputable that elections have become the foundation of democracy. Therefore, it is the right of citizens to participate freely and peacefully in the democratic process without fear, intimidation, or threat.
“We cannot say in Nigeria that the 2027 election would be conducted in an atmosphere of peace.”
Falana also said United States President, Donald Trump, can not help Nigeria’s democracy, adding that it is the responsibility of Nigerians to defend their democracy.
The Presiding Bishop, The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Dr. Mike Okonkwo, urged Nigerians to participate actively in the democratic process.
Okonkwo who is marking his 81st birthday anniversary also advised Nigerians not to be disillusioned by the current national challenges, adding that Nigeria will be better.
The guest lecturer, Ayo Obe, opposed the appointment of the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Dr. Abisoye Coker-Odusote in the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council as well as the appointment of the Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Zacch Adedeji, as Deputy Director of Fundraising of the APC 2027 Presidential Campaign Council.
Obe who is a former President of Civil Liberties (CLO) and the guest lecturer at the event said there are, however, positive developments in the country’s democratic process.
She said: “Let me again reference the way that certain public office holders accepted appointment into the APC’s Election Committee when the nature of their offices should have meant that the ruling party ought never to have nominated them into that committee and the standard expected of them should have led them to decline such positions.
“The central question remains whether democratic institutions can remain independent when the ‘winner takes it all’ and political power provides access to patronage, public resources, contracts, appointments and influence? The temptation to win at all costs is one that few find it easy to resist.
“And where winning becomes the overriding objective, democratic institutions can become tools by which political competition is waged, rather than the guardians of democracy that they are supposed to be. I am sure that few of us have doubts about that.
“Elections themselves have become more credible. While the power in the hands of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) remains huge and worrying, the room for judicial idiosyncrasies is being reduced, and it remains the duty of those who wish to challenge election results to be serious, right from the point of selecting and choosing their political party agents to the presentation of their petition and the evidence supporting it.”
