An analysis by the
European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) has
identified factors that could threaten the smooth conduct of elections in the
country.
The report, released on Thursday, is a publication produced
by the DAI, an international development company, with the support of the EU.
The report listed poor logistics management, possible
malfunction of the BVAS, divisive disinformation, farmer-herder conflicts,
displacement as a result of flooding, insecurity, among others, as issues that
may affect the general election.
On farmer-herder conflicts, the report cited a reference to the recent comment by Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue, and said there is a need to prevent escalating clashes so as not to hinder the smooth conduct of the polls.
“Farmer-herder
conflicts remain a serious threat. Centred around contestation over natural
resources, land and water, they have been observed recorded in 22 of Nigeria’s
36 states,” the report reads.
“Some of the states with the most significant and recurrent
violence include Benue, Plateau, Taraba, Kaduna, Ondo, Oyo and Adamawa.
“These conflicts have implications for the elections beyond
the displacement of citizens, particularly given how politicians have
historically targeted ethnic support bases during campaigns.
“Disinformation is
another significant enabler of election-related violence in Nigeria. Online
propaganda is being curated both locally by ‘soldiers of the mouth’, but also
by international experts and troll farms tasked with pushing a particular
political agenda, as witnessed in several elections in the USA and other
countries. Content on digital platforms is also being utilised to confuse
voters and delegitimise the process.
“INEC is a particular target of disinformation campaigns
with recent inaccurate information circulating about its involvement in the
removal of names from certain ethnicities from the voter register as part of a
wider effort to reduce voter turnout in opposition areas.
“It is important to recognise the overlap of this online
content into offline spaces or into the conventional media where its reach
expands further.
“Hate speech is a growing feature of the wider information
landscape.”
The report also cited the need to ensure that the
introduction of the bimodal voter accreditation system (BVAS), described as a
“game changer”, is very effective.
“The use of the BVAS is compulsory as per the new electoral
act of 2022, however, if the technology is deployed unevenly or if there are
not enough trained technicians on BVAS to address malfunction then it can also
fuel politicised narratives of disenfranchisement,” the report reads.
“The risk that purely technological failures in 2023 will
generate accusations of electoral manipulation is real.
“In that regard, BVAS is also a security concern which if
not properly deployed could undermine the stability and credibility of the
elections.”
The report also listed recommendations to improve the
electoral process, including the need to “establish a dashboard of key
indicators on election risk management, engage with social media platforms and
government agencies with the aim of developing a code of conduct for
engagements between the platforms and INEC, recruit locals as adhoc electoral
officials instead of non-residents of a state, encourage improved sharing of
intelligence among security agencies”.
The full report is available here.
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European countries are bent on interfering in the next presidential elections in Nigeria . This is why he is giving false excuses about herders farmers clashes that could hamper the credibility of votes . The Europeans have their candidate in mind; a person that will open Nigeria borders for them to come and spill the resources of the country. It is not normal that Nigeria still invites foreign observers during elections. Western countries are responsible for our electoral crisis when results does not favour their candidates.
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