The governorship election of Anambra is very much around. The people of the state, all things being equal, will on November 6, 2021, file out in their numbers to elect their preferred candidate out of the many that have presented themselves to serve the state at the Government House, Awka. The build up for the elections has been very difficult and still is, because of the activities of the unknown gunmen that go about killing innocent people, including security personnel across the South East. In fact, many have called for the postponement of the election but the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) maintained that the change of the elections date or its postponement was not on the card at all and should not be contemplated. It insisted that November 6 would come and go like every other dates. This week, in fact, will be very crucial as all political parties would be rounding off their campaigns in their bid to win more votes for their preferred candidates.
The campaign has also taken the candidates out of Anambra state to places like Lagos and Abuja where the majority of Anambrarians live. Howbeit, we want the government to do more intelligent work in the South East now that Anambra election is drawing very near to see that the lives of the candidates and the voters are secured during and after the elections. No matter how any one sees it, democracy, where the people elect their leaders still remains the best form of government but what people frown on is how the state is run by those elected into offices because of their failure to do the biddings of the people as required by law. The Anambra elections is not different from other states elections, in fact many see Nigerian state as a country that pays lip service to everything democracy is all about, following the seemingly challenges the country is currently going through that suddenly resonate all manners of agitations almost everywhere in the country.
The feeling everywhere is that the government currently lacks the capacity to provide the Nigerian people good governance urgently needed at this time, based on its nepotic tendencies that is visible everywhere. The demand therefore all over Nigeria is accountability from all the leaders, whether from the state or from the Federal level. For the governorship candidates in Anambra, while we acknowledge that the task ahead is enormous, we also want to reiterate that Nigerians are tired of empty promises given the state of the nation today and the agitations of the people for inclusiveness and quality of lives, which is their fundamental rights as citizens of the state.
The deployment of legion of police and military personnel, and the sudden use of brute force which the South Eastern region is experiencing in recent times may be counter-productive if fear and intimidation which is still the order of the day is not addressed. While Government is expected to provide the necessary security, intimidation and harassment of the people which the security agents appear to be enjoying this time should be addressed clean and clear to allow people come out to exercise their franchise unhindered. The officers who are in one way or the other indicted owing to high handedness should be redeployed out of Anambra, to give peace a chance, while those already drafted to the state to ensure peaceful conduct of the November governorship election be watched closely and should not be partisan in their conduct as they carry out their duties. One striking thing to note here also is that, the South East as at today, is highly militarized by the Federal government and any further attempt to insult the sensibility of the people, especially the Anambrarians, who are poised to go to the poll may not augur well, especially at this time of heightened tension of insecurity of lives and properties-.
