To understand elections in Nigeria one needs to dig a little into the history of this beautiful country .Nigeria is a diverse country of about 200 million people ,comprizing 250 ethnic groups spread across 36 states and the FCT (923,768 km2 of land), and located in western Africa. NIGERIA was formerly a colony of the British Empire and gained her independence on the 1st of October 1960 transitioning her into a brief phase of democratic rule before a successive period of military rule from 1967 to 1979 when the first election was conducted by Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo.

This election produced President Shehu Shagari and was deemed as fair but military rule came back shortly after. Another election was conducted on the 12th of June, 1993 , by the then military president , Gen. Murtala Mohammed which was deemed as the fairest election In Nigeria’s history but the election was annulled amid widespread public unrest.

Power soon went democratic as elections were conducted in 1999 by Gen. Abubakar Salami which produced Olusegun Obasanjo as the President and elections have been conducted periodically ever since in accordance with one of the core tenets of democracy.

GOVERNMENT TYPE

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The current Nigeria is a U.S style federal republic with the president as the executive head , it has a legislative head(senate president) and the head of the judiciary(Chief justice). With 360 members of the house of representatives and 109 senators , elected by the people , this system of government is supposed to be very effective except that it isn’t.

The system is characterized by wide spread corruption and skewed to favor the rich and affluent whereas the poor continue to suffer. For instance the court that is supposed to be the hope oF the common man , hardly goes against the powerful and connected, and the constituted authorities have proven to just be toys used for election manipulation and oppression.

ELECTION METHODS IN NIGERIA

Nigeria operates a secret ballot system whereby eligible adults, 18 years and above, go to their registered polling units with their permanent voters card and vote for the political party or candidates of their choice. The elections are conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission , INEC ,and the winner of the polls are announced once all the votes have been collated and counted .

In this method , only the voter knows the candidate they vote for and each voter is entitled to just one vote. This method has its cons as thuggery has become a major feature of recent elections in Nigeria , vote buying and voter intimidation has made Nigerian election a spectacle of shame.

There has been recent innovations like the use of electronic card readers and electronic transmission of results , the former ends up getting dumped due to malfunctioning by the electoral officers and the later is still facing slow implementation due to political barriers .

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All in all the electoral system has not been effective in my opinion because political parties have so much influence that elations can be rigged even in the higher levels, not just on the fields.

MY VOTING EXPERIENCE

I participated in the last round or elections in 2019 and my experience was BAD and chocking , I am grateful for being alive today to tell the tale , because dead men tell no tales, my polling unit at Ganaja , not far from Lokoja , was attacked by thugs who shot sporadically , we had to run for cover . I literally saw our votes scattered on the floor and that experience has got me thinking if I will vote in any election any time soon.

MY ELECTION SUGGESTION

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The method of election here is not the problem for me, it is the attitude of the people. No election is 100% credible but then it is up to the people to ensure that their will stands. If the youths refuse to take up arms and be used as political thugs , who will these politicians use? If officials refuse to do the bidding of their political godfathers , and everyone realizes that ultimately we all bear the brunt of our actions , then and only then , will our electoral shackles be broken.

MY PREFERED GOVERNMENT SYSTEM FOR NIGERIA

Nigeria is wide and diverse , so a CONFEDERATION style of governance will be the solution to many of the socio-economic solution of Nigeria. Let me expatiate on this, some major ethnic groups has been trying to pull out of Nigeria and create a breakaway republic due to historic differences and ”marginalization” so allowing the three main regions to be an autonomous region under within the same country will be excellent , something similar to Hong Kung and mainland China , although regional system difference wouldn’t be as much.

CONCLUSION

There are no problems without solutions albeit some problems just require more time and bravery to solve. Also every country has got its own unique problems like the issue of elections in Nigeria . I think it is a matter of time , Nigeria will get it right , it may take decades and a lot of needless blood being spilled but one thing is sure, Nigeria will be great !