Ahead of the Kogi, Bayelsa, and Imo governorship elections, the Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED) has urged citizens of the states to vote wisely.

Development Diaries reports that the civil society organisation (CSO) also urged voters to defend and safeguard their ballots by ensuring that each vote is tallied.

It is understood that 5.4 million registered voters are expected to cast their ballots in all three states and the exercise will be conducted concurrently in the states on 11 November from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm.

In a statement, CHRICED noted that political actors have continued to demonstrate a lack of willingness to prioritise the needs of the people.

‘As usual, political actors have demonstrated a lack of willingness to learn and reset the democratic system by urgently changing their mindset, which is motivated only by a desire for political power and primitive accumulation’, the statement read.

They further urged President Bola Tinubu to display statesmanship and leadership by instituting an immediate, comprehensive process for reforming and cleaning up Nigeria’s electoral process.

‘From the federal to state levels, actors have failed to prioritise the people of Nigeria and the country. It is still all about grabbing and snatching power at any cost, even if it means putting citizens’ lives in danger’, it added.

‘This is the mindset behind the fights, peddling of fake news, misinformation, and disinformation that has characterised the pre-election period in off-cycle election states’.

The organisation further urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to operate in a professional manner, allowing every ballot to count, while calling on the security agencies to ensure the safety of the electoral environment so that voters can freely exercise their right to vote.

Photo source: Brittany Danisch