2027: Let Nigerians’ wishes prevail, group tells INEC

The Centre Against Injustice and Domestic Violence (CAIDOV) has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that the wishes of Nigerians prevail in the 2027 general elections.

The Executive Director of CAIDOV, Mr Gbenga Soloki, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos.

Soloki said the elections must depart from previous flaws, irregularities and manipulations, noting that Nigerians desired genuine democracy where their votes counted.

“Let the wishes of the people prevail during the 2027 general elections. This is our warning to INEC.

“Nigerians are tired of electoral fraud, vote-buying, voter intimidation, falsification of results and technical glitches that are deliberately orchestrated to subvert the will of the people,” he said.

He urged INEC to restore public confidence through early preparations, transparent recruitment and training of ad hoc staff, and effective functioning of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).

Soloki also called for real-time electronic transmission of results from polling units to ensure transparency and credibility.

“The era of inconclusive elections, late arrival of materials, over-voting, ballot box snatching and announcing results that are at variance with what was recorded at polling units must end.

“INEC must be truly independent and impartial,” he said.

The human rights activist urged security agencies to remain neutral and professional before, during and after the elections, warning against voter intimidation and disruptions in opposition strongholds.

He charged political parties and candidates to shun violence, hate speech, ethnic and religious bigotry and embrace issue-based campaigns.

Soloki urged politicians to address hunger, insecurity, unemployment and hardship facing Nigerians in their campaign promises.

He also called on youths, women and eligible voters to participate actively in the electoral process and obtain their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

“Vote-buying is mortgaging your future. If you sell your vote, you have sold your right to demand good governance. Nigerians must vote their conscience in 2027,” he said.

He assured that CAIDOV, as a human rights and pro-democracy organisation, would embark on massive voter education and deploy observers nationwide to monitor the elections.

(NAN)