Guber Polls: Group Urges Nigerians to shun ethnic, religious politics

Ahead of the March 18th governorship polls in Nigeria, a pan-African organisation, the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), has called on Nigerians to rise above ethnic, religious, and other secondary tendencies, and participate in the democratic process.

The group charged citizens to hold politicians accountable for their actions and promises and further urged politicians to call their supporters to order and de-escalate rising tension and election-related violence in several states across the country.

CAPPA, in a statement by the Director of Programmes, Philip Jakpor, expressed worry over the rising use of hate speech, tribal, and ethnic profiling, as well as the widespread circulation of fake news laced with inciting comments.

The statement reads in part: “We are particularly worried about reports of rising tension in Sokoto, Lagos, Rivers, and Kaduna, among several others.

“All stakeholders, political leaders, security agencies, and the government, must take immediate action to de-escalate the surging tension and violence, and safeguard the rights and dignity of every Nigerian as guaranteed in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended),” CAPPA’s Research and Policy Officer, Zikora Ibeh, stated.

The organisation observed that electoral violence not only undermines democracy but also perpetuates a culture of societal unrest and the exclusion of citizens from participating in governance processes.

CAPPA said: “We are particularly dismayed by the growing levels of tribal hostilities that are polarising the beautiful diversity of the Nigerian people. These hateful ethnic diatribes, championed by divisive political elements bent on fanning the base sentiments of citizens have continued to fuel political disquietude and animosity among different ethnic groups.

“We are urging politicians, and most importantly the candidates, to act in manners that promote amity, engage their supporters in peaceful electoral processes and end all hateful rhetoric. We challenge political actors to take concrete steps to promote peace during elections by refining their campaigns to address pertinent questions of moving the country forward,” Ibeh stressed.

The group affirmed that the peace of Nigerians is non-negotiable and urged all relevant security agencies such as the Police, and the Inter-agency Consultative Committee on Election Security, amongst others, to closely monitor the ongoing electoral process and hold all purveyors of violence and political actors accountable for their actions to deter others.

N.O