Abuja, 30 March,
2015: Nigerians from all walks
of life went to the polls on Saturday, March 28, 2015 to vote for their
leaders. Notwithstanding several hitches and some frustrations, citizens turned
out in large numbers and showed tremendous tenacity, patience and tolerance.
All through the voting process and across the country, Nigerians exercised
their constitutional right to elect their leaders with civic pride.
The voting process was not without some
challenges, including pockets of violence and security breaches. From
different parts of the country, there have been incidents, reports and
allegations of various forms of violence, including some reported attacks by
extremists in some parts of north eastern Nigeria designed to frustrate the
exercise of the franchise. Some highlights include:
· Acts of violence resulting in fatalities have
so far been reported in Akwa Ibom, Borno, Bauchi, Edo, Gombe, Lagos, Osun,
Rivers, and Yobe States.
· At the end of yesterday, the number of
persons reported killed in these attacks and incidents is over 50. This number
includes one state legislator, a community leader and two (2) ad-hoc election
staff of the I Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), allegedly been
killed in an extremist attack in Gombe State, as well as the killing of an
asset of the Nigerian armed forces in Rivers State.
· There were also reported cases of injuries
from politically-motivated violence in Edo, Ekiti, Imo, Lagos, and Kano States
as well as allegations of snatching of ballot boxes, Card Readers and related
election materials in some states, including Akwa Ibom, Benue, Gombe, Imo,
Niger, and Rivers States.
· There have also been isolated but very
worrying reports of arson attacks on assets of the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) and of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in parts of
the Niger Delta.
· Similarly, we have also noted widespread
availability of small arms and light weapons (SALW) in some parts of the
country, especially in parts of Akwa Ibom, Imo, Delta, Rivers, and Benue
States.
All acts of election-related violence must be
condemned unreservedly. The affected families and communities deserve our
condolences, compassion and support.
In particular, we condemn the killing of and
attacks on uniformed personnel of the security agencies as well as the killing
of INEC staff. Those responsible must be held to account. Such political
violence dishonors the high sense of civic pride, sacrifice and co-existence showed
by Nigerians throughout this period.
The right to life remains the foundation of
all human rights, including the right to vote. Election violence undermines
both the right to life and the right to vote.
Now that the voting is over, the best
guarantee of a violence-free election is a credible count and collation. This
is the statutory responsibility of the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC).
The tabulation of results from 150,000
polling units and voting points is a demanding logistical operation. It is also
usually the most difficult phase of any election process. It is natural for
citizens and communities to be anxious. This is also where conscience and
patriotism beckon on all the political parties, political leaders, communities,
citizens and institutions to do the right thing: we must all
patiently support the INEC in delivering on this task.
The overall professionalism and performance
of the security agencies in safeguarding the electoral process also deserves
particular commendation.
Both President Goodluck Jonathan, GCFR, and
General Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, equally deserve commendation for their public
commitment to submit to the free and voluntarily expressed will of the Nigerian
people.
Through their conduct, Nigerians have once
again showed a genuine desire to co-exist with one another and to choose their
leaders freely through credible elections. Even as the counting and collation
process remains underway, the people and government of Nigeria as well as
political parties and leaders deserve to be proud of this evidence of a
maturing political system and to ensure that it is sustained and
preserved.
The National Human Rights Commission remains
committed to working with law enforcement and the security services of Nigeria
to ensure effective investigation and accountability for all crimes of
election-related violence.
STATEMENT BY CHIDI ANSELM ODINKALU, PH.D,
CHAIRMAN GOVERNING COUNCIL, NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION.
Follow @ChairmanNHRC
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