The Emir of Kano Aminu Ado Bayero and the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations on Gender Equality, Child Protection, Leadership and Good Governance have stressed the need for free and fair elections, saying that the nation must get it right in 2023.
The Emir said that Nigerians want positive changes in the country, stressing the need to vote for leaders who can stand for the people.
“So, I think we need to do so much from top to bottom because the population of Nigerians downwards, those are the decision makers. And the people can use their votes to come and vote and select good leaders,” Bayero who was represented by Maaji Kano, Lamido Umar Yola during an event in Abuja yesterday organised by the CSOs in preparation for the 2023 general election.
The national president of the coalition Elizabeth Oziri while speaking with newsmen said: “We have had enough of just the normal ways. We want the people’s voices to be heard.
Oziri stressed the need for the people to decide who will lead them in 2023, adding that the people should also be able to take a decision on who their leaders should be.
She said the group aims to ensure that Nigeria gets it right in Nigeria in terms of leadership of the country and governance.
Oziri also said it aimed to ensure that the people’s voices are heard.
She said, “They should go out and google and search the history of these leaders. They should go and check them through and confirm the stuff they are made of.
“As far as we are concerned, we have to get it right this time. We are no longer ready to go for vote buying, vote selling, and mediocre, people who just come in and help us destroy the nation the more.”
Oziri further said as the country moves closer to the elections, the civil society organisations will be playing major roles such as advocacy, enlightenment of the society about their right to vote, and partnering with the government as far as monitoring and observing elections are concerned.
“The civil society is also going to be able to speak to the government, partner with them, telling them the heart of the people and telling them the expectations of the people from them,” Oziri also said.
