2011 election as threshold for this generation of Nigerian youths

It is an incontrovertible fact that every generation comes with its purpose. For a generation of youths in Nigeria, it was their duty to win for us, an independent state from the colonial masters. It was the duty of yet another generation of youths to stand up against military dictatorship and win for us a democratic state. For our generation, it is our duty to re-order politics. It is to ensure that politics transform from being a mere power game to indeed being a mixture of ideas and forces that would meet the common need of our people.

The 2011 election present itself as threshold for us as youths of this era to enter into our purpose and we must seize the moment. We must be burdened by the waste that characterises our polity. After having made well over 1.5 trillion dollars from oil exploration, our country still lies in waste and it has been proven beyond every reasonable doubt that this has resulted from our lack of visionary, sincere and incorruptible leadership. The 2011 election therefore being another time to determine the leadership of the country serves as an opportunity for us to rise to the occasion and ensure that at all levels, from the local government to the presidency, only those who would serve the common interest of sustainable development of our land and people emerge victorious at the polls. It is as we ensure that people’s vote count and thereby elect the right people who would then be responsible to the people that we can guarantee good governance, which is the irreducible minimum for sustainable development.

Every fact and statistic point to our ability to indeed live up to the purpose of our generation because if politics is factually a game of numbers and the population of youths in the country is not less than 55% of the total eligible voters, you would agree that rather than continue to agonize, we only need to organize ourselves and the rest will be positive history on our part. It is an open secret that one of the tools of oppressors from time immemorial is the divide-and-rule tactic and it is unfortunate that this remains one tool that has been and continues to be deployed against a cohesive common front by Nigerian youths since the heyday of the National Association of Nigerians Students (NANS). This time however calls for the youths of this generation to rise above this and forge a cohesive common front to take back our country from the hands of usurpers and set it on the true path of greatness, beginning from the 2011 election.

We have taken the bull by the horn by pulling over a 100 youth NGOs and youth-led community organizations together under the banner of the National Youth Network on Nigeria Elections (NYNNE). The National Youth Network on Nigeria Elections (NYNNE) is a non-partisan, grassroots-based coalition of several vibrant and committed youth NGOs and youth-led community organizations with the sole aim of championing effective youth participation in the electoral process. NYNNE came into being in April of 2010 following a National Youth Summit on the 2011 general elections organized by the International Republican Institute (IRI) in Kaduna. The summit was a follow-up to a Youth Dialogue on Electoral Reforms that was put together in June and September of 2009 in Jos and Lagos respectively by the Youth Action Initiative Africa (YAIA) with the support of IRI.

NYNNE’s intervention in the electoral process is presently set on two clear objectives, which are: 1.) Increasing youth participation in the electoral process from voters’ registration to actual voting. 2.) Reducing youth involvement in electoral violence. While the first objective is targeted mainly at the educated youth (and some uneducated youth) who have vastly developed apathy to the system and are not particularly interested in both the electoral and political systems, the second objective is aimed at both the uneducated and vulnerable youth who are easily recruited for violence during elections. NYNNE has adopted a Ward Membership Model (WMM) in which membership is mobilized and coordinated at the ward levels under the headship of what we call Ward Leaders.

One critical work for the NYNNE on Election Day is the duty of ensuring the votes are counted and that the votes count. It may not really be herculean mobilizing people to come out and vote while also ensuring that the Independent national Electoral Commission (INEC) does the right things from voters’ registration to the actual voting exercise but the onerous task is guarding against political thugs at the polling stations to ensure the will of the people prevails. It is in this regard we are building our membership structure at the ward levels for us to form ourselves into blocs of youths in each polling unit, already given orientation regarding election security, to work with security agents and electoral officials through the Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN) and the INEC respectively in ensuring the safety of voters and the votes. It is on this premise that it becomes critically important for us all to join the NYNNE in our localities.

The starting point for the 2011 electoral revolution is the voters’ registration exercise and the NYNNE is committing itself to guarantee that it is a ‘no youth left behind’ exercise. During the registration exercise, please get registered no matter how difficult or time-consuming the process might get and encourage your friends and family to do same. History beckons and we cannot afford to fail posterity.

SECURITY ALERT: WHY NIGERIA'S 2011 GENERAL ELECTIONS MAY NOT BE DIFFERENT FROM THOSE OF 2003 AND 2007

The issue: security at the polls

The conduct of the 2011 general elections is now constitutionally less than 120 days away except, if by unparalleled ingenuity, the National Assembly accedes to the request of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for extension till April 2011. And as usual with so many things Nigerian, preparations for the elections have been bedevilled, as a result of lateness in commencing the preparations, which has made even the INEC like several other analysts to ask for more time beyond the current constitutional provisions. Only recently the convener of the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) likened the appointment of Attahiru Jega as INEC chair to that of Lars Lagerback as Super Eagles coach, which was also done very close to the World Cup fiesta and while the SNG leader hoped that Jega would not fail the way Lagerback did with the Super Eagles at the fiesta, what the comparison elicited in me is the wise saying that, ‘it is insanity to do things the same way and expect different results’.

It was in order not to sound as a prophet of doom that I opted to reframe the title of this piece from the original, ‘Why 2011 general elections will still fail’. Just like I found it hard to convince a number of friends before the World Cup fiesta that there was no miracle that could make the Super Eagles perform well even with the appointment of the best coach to replace Amodu Shaibu at that time, I believe it will be a herculean task to convince optimistic Nigerians that the success or otherwise of the 2011 general elections goes beyond Attahiru Jega and the INEC. As Nigerians, we are too accustomed to closing our eyes to obvious realities before an event, with unfounded optimism for the best of results, only to become expert analysts on how we got it wrong when the results at the end of the event proves contrary to our optimism.

The significance of security in the conduct of elections, particularly in Nigeria, cannot be overemphasized. The 2007 general elections and subsequent re-run and by-elections have left us with undesirable experiences regarding the security of electorates, electoral officials and election materials with the entire process completely hijacked by political thugs in several of the polling booths across the country. As a matter of fact, the funds and stress that went into the post-2007 elections judicial contests could have been saved only if the Police had ensured the incidences of ballot-snatching & stuffing were eliminated.  And if the truth must be told, with the present situation of things, there is no indication that any measures have been put in place to ensure a different situation in this regard come 2011.

Notwithstanding the commendable efforts by both the Executive and the Legislature thus far on the preparations for the elections as well as those of the INEC in opting for a fresh voters’ register to guarantee credible polls, so long as the security component of preparations is neglected, the 2011 elections will still fail to meet the genuine aspirations of the people. While the INEC has been doing a lot in preparing for the elections and the politicians too have begun preparations with a good number of them already declaring interests in the various elective positions and the political parties already fixing the dates for their conventions, there is doubt if any preparation by the Police to guarantee maximum security during the conduct of the elections is on.  

 To complement all the efforts and resources already expended on the preparations including of course the over N87 billion of tax-payers’ money released to procure the Direct Data Capturing (DDC) machines for the voters’ registration exercise, the Nigerian Police must also adequately prepare for the elections and this must transcend the usual day-to-day policing tendencies for which we know the Police. The Police can help ensure that the true will of the people emerges at the polls by ensuring that at the polling stations, there is no room for the intimidation of voters by political thugs of those who are bent on usurping the voting power of the electorate to impose themselves on the people.

A good example to underscore the security dimension of the conduct of elections was given by Adeyeye Joseph in his column in The Punch of Tuesday, August 24, 2010 in which he made reference to Obosi in Anambra State where thugs ordered voters who were not PDP members to ‘vacate’ the polling booth during the 2007 elections, a situation he said made a young voter to ask the question during an electoral enlightenment programme to the effect that, “what should we do when we go out to vote and party thugs surround us with cutlasses and insist we vote for a particular candidate?” And in the same column, he had alluded to the report of the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) on the 2007 elections, which underscored the fact that ‘when elections are preceded by last-minute security preparations, the organizers are only programming them to fail’. 

Proposed Interventions

In the same manner the INEC was able to articulate its position to secure N87 billion for the conduct of a fresh voters’ registration amongst other things, it is expected of the Police hierarchy, with the benefit of previous experiences in the conduct of elections, to come up with their requirements for effective security at the forthcoming polls, no matter what the cost is. This must cover the requirement of men and equipments to be deployed in all the polling booths during the elections, such equipments as are needed for effective communication and mobility by the security men on election duty. And I believe that the same way the INEC’s request was treated with national urgency, such a request from the Police would also receive adequate executive and legislative support.

In projecting the idea of the National Youth Network on Nigeria Elections (NYNNE) in its press statement, for effective policing of the 120,000 polling units, there ought to be at least 2 police officers in each polling unit fully armed with adequate communication and mobility resources. This gives us the need for a minimum of 240,000 officers to only man the polling stations. Considering the fact that the Police would not abandon its duty to several other areas of State all because of the elections and may as such not be able to deploy this number of men, that is if we even have up to that figure in the force, NYNNE has suggested the formation of a Joint Elections Para-military Commission (JEPC) to pull human resources from other Para-military agencies like the Civil Defense Corps, Man-O-War and the likes, to join forces with the Police. This is to ensure that away from the old ineffective mode of collaboration among these agencies, there is such a commission as the JEPC with men and officers pulled from the various agencies under a single command that is singularly responsible for effective security at the polls.

Further to this, an intensive training of about six to eight weeks should be conducted under the auspices of the commission for all the officers in all areas of election security covering but not limited to ‘Handling of electorates in quelling untoward situations during an election’, ‘Safeguarding electoral officials and election materials’ and ‘Channeling undue influence by politicians’. With the recent advent of bombing in Nigeria, the Police must also undertake training in relation to this so as not to take chances.

The Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) should also give attention to advocacy in this regard of election security and not limit their work on the aspects of preparation that concern only INEC. The Network On Police Reform In Nigeria (NOPRIN) should take responsibility to lead the CSOs on this course of action. We all have a responsibility to ensure that the 2011 elections have at least a measurable 80% success and no stone must be left unturned in this regard.

Conclusion

When INEC is able to produce a credible voters’ register and is able to mobilize men and resources to the various polling stations but the Police and other security agencies cannot guarantee security of those men and resources along with the electorates, the desired results cannot be realized. It is in this regard that the necessary efforts must be kick-started towards the emergence of formidable security machinery for the elections.   

The Police hierarchy must wake up to its responsibility of ensuring and assuring adequate preparation for effective security at 2011 polls. The CSOs should as well be upbeat about this. This is an aspect of the electoral process that is largely overlooked but eventually ends up being very critical as has been largely witnessed in the recent re-run elections in Ekiti state. Rather than wait to simply put reports of woes together in this regard after the elections, we can join forces together now in ensuring that better preparations are put in place by the security agencies just the same way it is on with the INEC.

8 sure strategies of getting to the top on your job

I had recently gone over my jotter and thought it wise to share the following from it. They are nuggets that I jotted from one of the reports on Robert Allen’s website after digesting his best-selling book, Multiple Streams of Income. The report is on how to become an Intrapreneur, as in the other side of being an Entrepreneur - you can access the full report on www.multiplestreamsofincome.com.

I have termed the nuggets the sure strategies of getting to the top on your job. If you would not think of pulling out and setting up your own business (an entrepreneur), then you must be thinking of getting to the top where you are and someday becoming a partner or a director (an intrapreneur). Find below the 8 strategies that would aid this aspiration.

1.     Think on how to become indispensable. Seek specialized positions.

2.     Think like the boss – to cut expenses and generate income. See/consider every job function component in the light of the bottom-line.

3.     When an assignment is given, treat it in terms of quality (content/what’s required) and quantity (time-line given).

4.     Do more than you are told ALL THE TIME – far more than what you are asked to do.

5.     In the course of any assignment and/or any job function component, probe any challenge and if need be, report for assistance immediately.

6.     Make your immediate supervisor look like a winner. To get to the top and be more valuable, make peace with your boss and commit yourself to your boss’ goals and objectives.

7.     Find your purpose at work and decide to be the best at it. Find what you love to do, what you enjoy about your job. Follow your heart and the money will follow. If you are not presently doing what you enjoy, make a plan to move toward that position in your company as soon as possible.

8.     Constantly retrain yourself. In addition to continuing learning what you need on the job as the world changes, you need to learn three specialized skills: i) How to think like a bottom-line business person. (ii) How to negotiate, persuade and influence. (iii) How to package and market yourself.

For more nuggets like this on related issues of job, money, business and technology, send your request to info@naijaunlimited.com. And for a copy of Robert’s book, Multiple Streams of Income, visit amazon.com via the link above on this page.

It’s a world of boundless possibilities. See you at the top!