Elections were fair but...
Bobby Benson
Such were the fear and anxiety in the days before the elections that a lot of Nigerians fled their own motherland to seek shelter outside the country. Within the nation, most of the Southern, especially the Ibos and Yorubas closed their shops and simply left the northern states and trooped down home anticipating a violent reaction from the North in case a lot of negative votes were registered against the NPN which controlled most of the Northern states.
The whole world, to be precise, the western democratic world was much relieved when the elections were carried out with such success and this was well-portrayed by the western media BBC, VOA, Radio France International and others in the way they trumpeted and showered praises upon Nigeria, the giant of Africa and the bastion of western democracy in Africa.
However, questions need to be answered. Were the elections really free and fair and democratically conducted as we have been made to believe? Or is it a fact that western democracy or the Westminster system of government which was imposed on us by our colonial masters is simply not compatible with the African way of life ie; our customs, norms and traditions and as a school of thought put it, Africans are not ripe for the western democracy.
I happen to be at Bunza, a village in the South-West corner of Sokoto state during the election campaigning days and I had the opportunity to observe how the elections were actually conducted.
I must make it clear that my observations may not be a yard-stick to judge the conduct of the elections in the whole federation.
Sokoto state is a strict moslem state like most of the eight other states. As such women, especially the married ones, hardly come out during the day time. This is a normal moslem custom, I believe.
Thus, during the elections one could hardly see any women around but it was a very common scene to boys between the ages of 10-14 well below the eligible voting years holding already stamped ballot papers trooping to the polling stations to cast them out. If they were asked how they came by them they innocently explained that they belonged to their mothers who were at home.
This is a typical case of where people cast their votes without considering any ideals or objectives of the candidates concerned. I believe one of the cardinal principles of western democracy is to cast votes secretly and vote according to one's conscience. Do these principles apply in Nigeria?
Experts might argue that Nigeria is just beginning and as a beginner it has made a very giant leap ahead. However, I believe that Africa has come of age now and it is high time we became creative and innovative and be able to fashion out a system that would suit our environment and tradition. We have enough intellectuals who should be able to adopt a system to bridge the two systems - Democracy and Socialism and create something indigenous for the African.
Which way are we drifting, Africa?
Bobby Benson, Sokoto
