Chief Emeka Charles Kalu is the Director-General, Global Initiatives for Good Governance (GIGG), as well as a People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain. Kalu, the National Coordinator, Peoples Democratic Party Coalition (PDPCO), in this interview with EJIKEME OMENAZU, speaks on the recent Edo governorship election, among other issues. Excerpt:
How do you see the recently held Edo governorship election?
By my personal assessment and evaluation, the recently held Edo State gubernatorial election failed integrity tests considering the widespread irregularities, alleged vote buying and other electoral frauds perceived to have marred the exercise. Most civil society organisations also confirmed that the election was marred by misconduct and other forms of abnormalities that made the serving governor of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, to tag the election as “a travesty of democracy”. There were referable cases of rigging where presiding officers at various polling units altered result sheets by adding figures to those of APC against the accredited number of voters which, in actual sense, depicts malpractices and violations of the Electoral Act 2022 (as amended).
What would you say accounted for your party’s loss of the election as the ruling party in the state?
Ahead of the election, PDP has been faced with a deluge of leadership crisis, ranging from the fracas between the Deputy Governor of the state, Philip Shuaibu, and his former boss, the outgoing governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki. The crisis lingered to the point that Shuaibu was booted out of office through impeachment, leading to his defection to APC (after his court reinstatement). Secondly, the entire electoral process was enmeshed in irregularities, where the APC took advantage of its being in control of power at the centre, hijacked the election in favour of its candidate. In the eyes of justice, the PDP won the election with a wider margin, but it was rigged out. I am confident that the law will take its due course to enable it reclaim its stolen mandate.
Don’t you think that internal wrangling between the governor’s camp and notable party leaders, leading to their defection to APC contributed immensely to the PDP loss of Edo?
In my precious response, I think I have done justice to this very question having thoroughly explained how PDP’s internal leadership crisis truncated its chances of winning the election without struggles because the aggrieved stakeholders could have joined forces to confront the political imbroglio that actually undermined its unity prior to the governorship election. This calls for fair consultations with all stakeholders while handling political businesses to enable all ventilate their feelings and be able to contribute in harmonising differences and achieving a united voice to stand and fight the course of justice.
Would you say that the federal government might have contributed to the APC victory in Edo?
Yes, it did because the entire processes leading the election were engulfed in fraud and irregularities, which have been previously spoken about. The Federal Government, in collaboration with the national electoral body, is suspected to have hatched and plotted a double standard in the election. For instance, the APC National Chairman, Ganduje, flew into Benin City on a private jet the very day the election was held despite movement restrictions in the state. What was his aim of violating the security order? Why wasn’t he arrested for breaching the security instructions, while Gov. Obaseki who lives in the state with the right to vote in the said election, was disrespectfully chased out of the INEC office by the Nigeria Police during collation processes? I think it is necessary we allow the law to decide the fate of the election since PDP has engaged its experienced lawyers to study the processes proceeding the election and respond on the way forward.
Going by reports of the Observer groups, would you suggest that the election be cancelled by the INEC after it might have reviewed it within seven days and a rerun held?
To the best of my knowledge, INEC promised to investigate alleged irregularities associated with the poll. But, to my greatest surprise, it went ahead to collate results from the 18 local government areas of the state and finally returned the APC candidate elected. Now, what does the Electoral Act say regarding perceived electoral malpractice allegations? That would help determine if INEC had acted accordingly by proceeding to announce results without first addressing alleged flaws and other complaints of misconduct during the election. INEC is the body legally authorised to conduct elections and announce results and it was believed to have discharged the assigned functions. So, the outcome of the election will not be revoked and cancelled since a candidate has been returned elected. Rather, the only window of relief open for aggrieved or dissatisfied persons is to seek redress in the court of law. Therefore, it is no longer in the power of the INEC to nullify the election, but one vested in the court of competent jurisdiction that has the power to enforce actions relating to the terms and spellings of the electoral laws.
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How did you see the performance of INEC and the security agencies in the Edo poll?
Well, INEC was believed to have discharged its constitutional duties by conducting the election and pronouncing the winner. But the processes by which the poll was conducted flagrantly contravened the established electoral procedures as evidenced in the Electoral Act 2022. The national electoral body promised to investigate a series of irregularity complaints lodged by the PDP. But, to my greatest dismay, it went ahead to declare a winner without responding to the widespread misconduct alleged against the conduct of the election. To me, it amounts to dereliction of duties and administrative negligence for such a dignified national institution to live below standards. As the case may be, INEC lacks the power to nullify the Edo State governorship election having returned a given candidate elected, except a court of law says otherwise. That is how the Electoral Act made it. I am confident in the ability of the PDP in closing ranks with their seasoned lawyers to ensure it legally reclaims its stolen mandate, using the apparatus of the pencilled Electoral Act. As for the Police, I condemn in totality the arbitrary arrest of major PDP stakeholders in the state prior to the election, with the clandestine intent of aiding and abetting rigging in APC’s favour. The sudden arrival of the APC National Chairman in Edo State on the election day, devoid of security instructions on movement restrictions proves at length the skeleton in the cupboard of the APC-led Federal Government to unfairly capture Edo State by all means. The party even vows to win Ondo and Anambra states using the Edo templates which makes one wonder if democracy still prevails over totalitarianism.
The Ondo governorship elections will be held soon. What is your advice to your party and its candidates?
The PDP has not lost leadership strength in Ondo State and the presence of great party stalwarts such as Chief Dele Momodu and other PDP stakeholders in the state always encourage and build our confidence in emerging victorious in the fast approaching off-season governorship election. Unity remains a force too difficult to be broken and the more united and spiritedly galvanised the party is, the greater her chances of emerging victorious in the election. The PDP has severally governed the said state with lines of noticeable infrastructural achievements which should guide the electorate in choosing their next governor. The Ondo State PDP is seriously advised to unitely remain stronger in its visions and drive to reclaim the state from APC whose leadership of the state is lopsided and encrypted in performance failures.
Local government elections are being held in some states. How do you see the emergence of only candidates of the ruling parties in the states as winners of the council elections held so far?
Without sentiment, it is truly a slap on our democracy for one political party to sweep and win the entire local government election in a state. The governors are not sincere with their actions because the state electoral bodies are under their control. They appoint the heads of these component state electoral agencies and the appointees in turns reciprocate their loyalty by unduly manipulating elections in favour of the governors’ anointed candidates.
In the Enugu, Imo and Kwara states recently held local government councils elections, the ruling parties of the various states won all, including Council Chairmanship and Councillorship seats. But, with the enactment of law establishing an independent national body saddled with the duties of conducting local government council elections in Nigeria, power would change hands and the state governors stripped of their arbitrarily abuse of democracy at the people’s expense.
Do you think that the INEC should take over the handling of local government elections or should the National Assembly enact a law creating another agency for LG polls?
Be it INEC or another independent body, the most important thing is to ensure that sanity, fairness and a corrupt-free democratic system thrives in Nigeria. Therefore, it is not a matter of INEC re-absorbing the functions of conducting local government council elections or creating another agency to do so, but the ability of whichever body entrusted with the duties to operate in accordance with the laid down lawful procedures by eschewing favoritism, nepotism and other sundry electoral crimes that have plagued free and fair elections in Nigeria. Getting another separate agency to oversee the affairs of local government council elections would be better off since INEC has not been able to justifiably give Nigerians credible elections for decades.
How do you see the state of the nation presently?
So far, there has not been any transformative changes in the economy as the price of fuel has risen to N1,200 per litre without any meaningful steps taken by the government to address the situation. The cost of living is not friendly with the citizens, while the government keeps promising positive changes by deceitfully asking Nigerians to be patient with Tinubu’s APC-led Federal Government. More so, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) through its monetary policy unit increased interest rate from 25.75% to 27.25% inconsiderate of the prevailing harsh economy gripping the naira’s purchasing strength both in the local and international markets. The Federal Government acceptance to pay N70, 000 minimum wage after protracted war of words with the Labour Unions is yet to be implemented while the federal university lecturers under the aegis of Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) sternly threatens to embark on another nationwide strike should the government fail to meet its demands. So, the present economic situation in the country has not yet improved for the better.
