Pro-democracy activists have decried the alarming continuous degree of voter apathy in the polity warning that the unfortunate development could spell doom the democratic rule in the country.
A Senior lecturer of the department of political science and international relations, Nile University of Nigeria, Dr Iroro Izu, in a presentation during the policy dialogue on voters turn out during election, organised by leadership, strategy and development (LSD) center in Abuja, warned against the repeat of the 23% voter turnout witnessed in the 2023 poll.
At the event which brought together frontline civil societies organizations (CSOs) and media practitioners, he argued that as things stands, Nigerians have experienced more of what could be described as voter burnout which could ultimately result in voter blackout if not checked by the authorities ahead of the 2027 poll.
According to the political scientist, Nigeria must strive to join countries like Rwanda, Kenya, Gambia and Ghana with high turnout during election.
Blaming the political elites for the development, he stressed the need to improve voter turnout to 90 % to restore credibility in the electioneering process in the country.
According to him, voter burnout entails the degree of discomfort, inconvenience, uncertainty and irresponsibility suffered by voters on election-day due to the unusually long-drawn hours voters spend or wait to vote mainly because of delay in voting, inefficiency of election devices, incapability and corruptibility of election workers, rude activities of thugs, hooligans, touts, corrupt security operatives, colluding communities and logistical breakdown.
To address the challenge, he called on those entrusted with the governance of the country to live up to the demands of governance in terms of bettering the living conditions of the people, and create the enabling environment for Nigerians to exercise their rights to vote for a candidate of their choice.
“When governance fails it means that government has failed and when this trend becomes successive, making all previous governments to resemble one another in failure, the voters will develop this complex that their votes do not translate to anything that brings meaning to their everyday lives,” he said.
“Time spent at a polling center for balloting takes too long most times because of failed logistical issues borne out of the delay in the arrival of election materials, election workers, and the securitization of polls. There must be a conscious approach to resolving this by making sure that the best logistical or courier group is tasked with the job of delivering all items.
“There are very reliable, trustworthy and time-conscious companies of this stature, so no matter whether it will cost higher, the government should pay. By so doing government will be prioritizing quality over quantity.”
He further called for massive voter education and sensitization to orientate voters on the importance of coming out to vote and that their votes will count adding that this education and sensitization cannot be done by only government but in collaboration with independent bodies like CSOs, media, traditional and religious institutions; as well as political parties and other relevant stakeholders.
The don further called for the setting up of election emergency mobile number and election offences mobile courts so that the relevant bodies can troubleshoot appropriately and with dispatch and that the number of polling units should be doubled to make voting centers more accessible to the voters, making time spent per voter at the polling unit reduced; and the centers should be designed to ensure inclusivity.
He also called for the adoption of a single-day for all elections on the basis that when the days of voting are too many, it makes the whole process cumbersome, tortuous and exasperating.
LSD’s Executive Director, Dr. Otive Igbuzor, argued that with 9 out of over 200 million Nigerians determining the election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, it could be likened to a minority government.
He called for good governance, judicial reforms, improved voter turnout in the 2027 poll, voter education as well as media and CSOs intervention to remedy the situation.
In his opening remarks, Executive Director of Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development (Centre LSD), Monday Osasah noted that ultimate authority resides with the people, who delegate their power to elected representatives through the electoral process.
He lamented that it is unfortunate that citizens are not only denied their voting rights, but their votes frequently fail to influence the final outcome of elections.