From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Despite innovations in the new Electoral Act, member of the House of Representatives, Esan North-East/Esan South-West federal constituency of Edo State, Sergius Ogun, has said human factors could affect the credibility of the 2023 polls.
However, Ogun, who is also a member of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) National Executive Committee(NEC), warned that it will be suicidal for anyone to attempt to manipulate the 2023 general elections. The lawmaker also barred his mind on developments within the opposition party, ahead of the party primaries.
The PDP Zoning committee recently completed its assignment and reportedly recommended that the contest for the presidential ticket be thrown open against the principle of zoning and rotation of elective offices as enshrined in the party’s constitution. What does that portend, especially with the governors from the Southern part of the country insisting on power shift?
Well, it will be difficult to speak to that right now; because like the chairman of that committee said, in person of Governor Ortom of Benue State, that they will submit their report to NEC and it’s NEC that will deliberate on it, and come out with the final decision. And he said they did not do away with zoning. So, maybe people that served in the committee are the ones talking. Since we haven’t received the official copy of that report, I think it will be unfair to comment on it.
But like I keep saying, I am not a typical politician, not your everyday politician. I am in support of zoning to the South, and whatever it takes to work for that, I will. If there is a Southern aspirant; if we can have a consensus, I will vote for the person. It does make common sense that we have a president right now from the North, who is doing his 8 years, when he finishes, you say because you believe you will win, if you bring another candidate from the North and another candidate comes in for 8 years, that will be 16 years. So, what does that do for the South? I am pro zoning.
The impression put there is that the PDP leadership has muddled the waters already by selling forms for the presidential primary, without the party first taking a decision on the issue of zoning. Prior to the 2023 general elections, the zoning of the presidential ticket was decided long before the commencement of the sale of forms. Is it not a ploy to at the end of the day, say everybody has bought form, let us throw the contest open?
If you are a party man, and you have bought form and there is consultation and you end up saying, okay we have agreed there is a consensus now that it should go to the South East for example, because of that agreement, people will understand; because if we say don’t buy forms, because we are going to zone to a particular place, that would not be fair, because you would have disenfranchised people, that will say even, “ if you are going to zone, I will still contest;” because legally you cannot stop people from contesting . If you put it that we are going to zone to the South east, we are further going to zone to this part of the South east; people will still buy(forms).
So, I don’t think there will be any controversy there. They are party people. They want to use the party platform. So, if it doesn’t favour them, they cannot now collapse the platform. It should be there for them; because, if it is not there today, it will be there tomorrow for you. So, I don’t think there will be a problem.
The PDP, in your home state of Edo, has been in crisis of late and we are approaching a general elections, will it diminish the party’s chances at the poll?
I think, we are going to resolve that. I think there have been series of meetings, the NWC set up a committee, again headed by Governor Ortom of Benue State and there has been series of meetings, last week even this week. So, I am sure we are close to resolving it. PDP is a big family, we always have a way of resolving our issues, I am sure Edo state chapter will not be different.
The electoral Act has been dogged by so much controversy, with Section 84(12), which talks about political appointees resigning, if they want to participate in congresses and conventions, becoming a subject of litigations, does this not imply some form of uncertainty as the court could rule either way.
I think to a large extent they have obeyed it. I think section 84(12) of the Electoral Act, because look at the APC convention, appointees didn’t vote and we have seen letters from different state Government houses, saying if you want to contest for election, respect the section of the electoral act and resign now. So, I see that narrowing the field. If you want to contest and you are a serving officer, resign. I think it has been partially obeyed, because you stand the risk; you saw the APC convention, if they have allowed appointees of government to participate in that convention, they would have been in danger, knowing that the court can void it. So, they were smart to say look, “while we are still discussing this, none of you can participate”, and the same thing will happen right now, because we are also seeing people resigning because they are interested in contesting the 2023 elections. So, there has been compliance. For those that are still waiting, maybe they are not going to contest for the election. But I think that will be settled very soon.
How do you think the new Electoral Act will affect the 2023 general elections?
It can only affect it positively. There is going to be transfer of election votes; then the use of BIVAS and all that. Those are things that will really help the transparency we have all been asking for in our elections. But the elephant in the room is INEC. If the BVAS is really working, the sort of things that we heard happened in Cross River by-election, in Plateau and other states will not be happening; which means that there is still a room to manipulate the system. But we are hoping that with BVAS, everybody will be captured. So, there will be no over voting at all.
Secondly, after voting in a particular unit, the results are transferred not transmitted; transferred as it is. So, the issue of saying somebody went to mutilate it somewhere before it gets to the LGA collation center will not be there. But with the by-elections, this still happens, and they were cancelling certain areas where the opposition votes will come from to favour those in government. So, if that’s going to play out in Ekiti and Osun , then it still portends a great danger for this country. So, we are hoping with all the investments in INEC and what Electoral act has done to cure these defects, it looks like human efforts are going to temper with it.
With these human efforts you talked about, are you as a member of the opposition confident of a credible election in 2023?
I am not. That is why some of us were crying out over the mode of recruitment of the INEC resident electoral commissioners. They shouldn’t be cronies of the people in government. It shouldn’t be cronies of the big wings in APC; because when they go there, they can still manipulate things. But when you see a known APC card carrying person and then you make the person a national commissioner, what is the person going to report? So, they are likely to post their boys that will manipulate, that will make the machine not to work-the BVAS might not function. If you know your opponents are very strong there or they just allow certain mistakes to happen, they say there is over voting and then you cancel that place. That is what I think happened in the bye elections. So, I would have thought INEC will use the by-elections, as a trial run for the big elections, but let’s see what happens in Ekiti and Osun; hopefully, that should give them enough time to correct it, because opposition is watching.
How can these human factors be checked?
It is manipulation, that is what I am saying. We have already complained. We complained about the individuals that are assigned. You can’t be a card carrying member of a party, and you will be an official to preside over election. I mean it’s not right. You will be asking far too much, if you expect that person to be impartial. But well, let’s see what happens, it will be unfair if we say we won’t give them the benefit of the doubt.
Let us be honest, the way the country is now, if any party goes ahead to manipulate elections, it might be setting the country ablaze. With all the problems we have right now, then you go ahead and manipulate an election and stay in office, against the wishes of the people? It might boomerang. If some people are planning anything like that, it is high time, they have a rethink. This is not Nigeria of 2007. It is not the same country.