Governors-elect and their deputies, as well as states Houses of Assembly members-elect, last week, received their certificates of return from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The ceremony will herald their swearing-in, a clear indication that the campaigns are over and time for the winners to roll up their sleeves and begin the critical task of governance.
Section 72(1) of the Electoral Act 2022, mandates INEC to issue a certificate of return within 14 days to every candidate who has been returned elected under the law.
INEC conducted governorship elections in 28 states of the federation on 18 March. The commission also conducted elections in the 36 state Houses of Assembly on the same day.
Going by the results released by INEC, 17 of the 28 governors-elect will be assuming office for the first time, while 11 of them will be returning for a second term as governors, though elections in Kebbi and Adamawa states were declared inconclusive.
The polity has been heated since the elections, with party supporters going at each other over results of the presidential and governorship elections.
While the leading opposition parties, the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party, have approached the courts to query the outcome of the elections, members of the ruling All Progressives Congress are not sitting by waiting for the outcome of the court process.
The Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Datti Baba-Ahmed, recently referred to President Muhammadu Buhari as the “incompetent” President of Nigeria, and the INEC Chairman Prof Mahmoud Yakubu as “arrogant.”
Baba-Ahmed in a TV interview expressed his disappointment over the outcome of the 2023 presidential election, warning that, ‘handing over to Tinubu is unconstitutional because he was declared president-elect without satisfying the requirement of the constitution’.
These accusations and counter accusations maybe inciting, no wonder the Department of State Services raised the alarm over plans to cause unrest in the country.
Spokesman of the DSS, Dr. Peter Afunanya, in a statement, said while some political players had sought redress in court, others were making inciting statements.
“The Department of State Services, again, alerts the public of plans to violently disrupt peace in the country. The service hereby warns those desperate to cause a breakdown of law and order to desist from that.
“It is evident that some aggrieved politicians are already taking advantage of this legal process. This, without a doubt, is the beauty of democracy. It is strongly believed that this approach enhances peace and security. All and sundry should cherish it.”
He stressed that the service would not allow the country to descend into a state of anarchy.
“Be that as it may, the DSS will not tolerate a situation where persons and/or groups take laws into their hands and champion anarchy.
“Those peddling fake news, hate speech, and all forms of false narratives as basis to ignite violence or pit the people against the present or incoming administrations, at the federal, state, and parliamentary levels, should stop forthwith.
“Those inciting violence have nothing to gain as doing so will not only consume them but also the innocent. It is otherwise disturbing to see respected personalities use their platforms to mislead or incite citizens. This, to say the least, does not augur well for peaceful coexistence and general order.”
While we acknowledge that such rhetoric are expected in post electioneering seasons, however, political players must learn to put national interest above personal or party interest.
They should also abide by the rules of engagement by approaching the court for redress where there are suspicions of infractions or manipulations of electoral processes.
Politicians and their supporters should allow judges in charge of political litigations do their jobs of interpretation of the constitution as such matters are the exclusive preserve of the courts.
The judges on their part must be seen to live above board and be fair to all sides irrespective of part, ethnic or religious affiliation.
Political actors must tone down their utterances and stop their divisive statements that are capable of tearing the country apart. They must realise that we have just one country and if the country burns we have nowhere to run to.
