As presidential and national assembly elections, and the 11th March 2023 Governorship and state assembly elections build up, a civil society group under the auspices of the Organization for Community Civic Engagement (OCCEN) in Kano has called on Nigerians to come out in mass to vote right leaders who will change the economic hardship occasioned by the scarcity of Naira notes as well as other challenges bedevilling the country.
While speaking to Newsmen earlier, Abdulrazaq Alkali, Executive Director of OCCEN stated that some politicians are of the belief that the CBN’s policy is targeted at them as it will make useless their financial power, thus are fighting back at the Federal Government. “Unfortunately, some politicians are trying to take advantage of these difficult times and are trying to rile up citizens against the government by sponsoring violent protests, creating chaos, and spreading media propaganda all with the aim of derailing the electoral process.
“With this development, it has become necessary for all well-meaning Nigerians to use their voice towards promoting and strengthening our democracy. Such is only possible if we all encourage citizens of this country to come out and exercise their electoral rights. We have the chance to re-elect performing leaders and replace underperforming leaders and political parties using the power of our votes.” He stated.
While noting that there is the fear that challenges occasioned by the scarcity of Naira notes and pockets of violence in some parts of the country will discourage some citizens from participating in the coming general elections as frustrations built up, he stressed that shying away from participating in elections will only compound Nigeria’s problems and jeopardize our future and that of the generation unborn.
He also pointed out that the current administration has done well in strengthening the electoral process by assenting to the Electoral Reform Bill 2022 which further improves the quality and transparency of our electoral system, adding that President Muhammadu Buhari has proved beyond doubt that he wants to leave a legacy of conducting a free and fair election.
“Professor Mahmood has shown capacity and commitment to deliver a fair and transparent election. However, all these efforts can only translate to positive results if Nigerians actively participate in the electoral process and elect their candidates of choice.” Alkali said.
He also emphasized avoiding money bags so as to make it difficult for corrupt politicians trying to truncate the Country’s democracy.
