The Controversial Card Reader
The Nigeria’s democracy is no longer fledgling, but advancing, the country has enjoyed uninterrupted democracy for sixteen (16) years. One of the features of democracy is a periodic election.
And election period is the time when the electorate vote out elected officers that are not doing well during their tenure.
However, one dangerous thing that truncates democracy and enthrone bad governance is rigging of elections.
Manipulations of votes during an election is giving much concern to democrats, political scientists and social science scholars. Sequel to this development to instill sanity into the Nigeria’s electoral process the outgone chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega introduced the Card Reader into the Nigeria’s voting system.
And since the introduction of the Card Reader into the nation’s electoral system, there is a twist in our election.
Why? Most of the Card Readers imported into the country are not functioning. There is nothing wrong to conduct free and fair election, but that the proper things need to be done.
In the just inconclusive governorship election in Bayelsa State, one of the basic complains was the malfunctioning of the Card Readers. The use of Card Readers in the conduct of elections in Nigeria is not in the nation’s constitution. Thus it is unconstitutional to use Card Readers during an election.
It is our pray that the national’s electoral body and the irrelevant authorities should stop embarrassing the country and her electoral system before the international community. The reason is that Nigeria is not ripe to use Card Readers in her electoral processes. ###
