By Fr. JY Achir

INTRODUCTION

A 36-year-old resident of Georgia, who shared her thoughts on the condition of anonymity, once opined thus: “I don’t plan to vote ever again…and none of my family members are voting this year. We don’t care who wins the election, because no elected politicians have helped during ‘these hard, dark times.’”

Norman, a self-described conservative millennial, writing for the online publication, The Doe, which shares anonymous narratives to promote civil discourse, also said “I don’t feel represented by the candidates the parties in power keep offering up, [A]nd I won’t vote for a ‘lesser evil.”

When elections draw near in Nigeria, do you hear anything different from the above? You hear people’s opinions on various aspects of Nigeria’s voting system. How some don’t see the need to participate in electioneering processes. They indicate this by the various comments they make such as, ‘I won’t participate in this election because my vote won’t count’, ‘there won’t be any justice’, ‘the elections have been rigged already’, ‘no need wasting my time’ etc. The present situation in the country has even made matters worse, as the insecurity, the fuel scarcity, the Naira scarcity have more or less become a thorn in the flesh of the average Nigerian. Having toured the offices of some of the political parties, in the name of advocacy, I’m able to share their concerns and those of their supporters or followers: there are places where the elections may not hold due to the insecurity, there are places where people may not return to vote due to fear of the unknown, there are displaced persons who may not exercise their franchise. Intimidation, hate speeches, impunity, vote buying, poverty, etc are also a thing of concern. This sorry situation is creating some form of voter apathy.

In the midst of all these, we are here to encourage ourselves that we shall participate in this election so long as we have the opportunity to. We will not continue to agonize. We will organize; changing our strategies especially when it comes to participating in elections. We believe that our votes will count this time; our votes have power, our votes matter.

WHO IS A VOTER?

A voter is a person who has the legal right to vote in elections, or a person who is voting in a particular election. Such a person must have possessed or acquired a genuine permanent voter’s card to be able to participate in an election, as in the case of Nigeria.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO VOTE IN AN ELECTION?

Citizens of voting age have the same constitutional rights and duties as everyone else to participate actively in public life. By voting, they participate in the democratic process, which is in the interest of advancing the common good. They vote for leaders to represent them and their ideas – leaders who will support their interests. “Participation is at the core of the realization of the common good. It is not enough for one individual or group, however equipped, to saddle itself with procuring the common good on behalf of everybody else. All are invited to work for it, and must be given every opportunity to participate in it, both as contributors as well as beneficiaries…” (Vademecum for electors in Nigeria, 30). By voting, all have the right and corresponding responsibility to determine the candidates who would govern them. This voting is in the light of the common good. The common good is for everyone and not for a select few. “Everyone has a certain civil or political relationship stemming from shared interests that cut across creed, ethnicity, race, and gender. This relationship is the source of the responsibility we have for each other… devoid of discrimination, favoritism, rancor, prejudice, and everything that would demean the dignity of man.” (Obodoechina, xxii). We would have no right to complain about the issues that concern the common good if we don’t vote. We lose the right to complain about public parks, access roads, electricity, clean water, clean air, public safety and security architecture, justice and judicial systems, harmonious relationships, sustainable environment, rich biodiversity, and so on if we don’t participate in this election.

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF CASTING A VOTE?

Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an electorate, can convene together for the purpose of making a collective decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election campaigns, for the sole purpose of electing leaders.

Voters in a representative democracy like ours, are supposedly to be entitled to free and informed choices for whom to vote and the choices must be dictated by the genuine welfare of the majority. Every individual political choice and decision made by the voters will determine the kind of government that will serve them. This is where your power comes in. This is where your power lies. If you don’t vote, you have no power to complain. Remember that it is for the common good that we vote. If our votes have no power, why then do people buy the voter’s card. Your voter’s card is powerful. If you decide to vote, you will effect a change.

 WHOM SHOULD I VOTE FOR?

The church cannot tell you whom to vote for because she is apolitical and non-partisan. However, she has a moral obligation to encourage her people to be actively involved in politics especially from the grassroots, where decisions translate to those who later sit at the helm of affairs and govern us. But to answer the question, one must bear in mind the social teachings of the Church. Any candidate whose body language, antecedents or utterances tell he has no respect for the dignity of human life, has no interest in the common good, should not even cross the mind of the voter. Any candidate who will have no consideration for freedom of religion, who does not support the principles of solidarity and subsidiary, who does not bother about the poor and vulnerable of society, will not have my one powerful vote cast in his favor. A candidate who will not guarantee security of life and property is not worth my vote. A candidate who will have no interest in the education and health care of the people won’t have my vote. A candidate who will not ensure an enabling environment for business to thrive should not even come forward, in the first place.

Whom will you then vote for? You have the power of decision.