The Edo Civil Society Organizations (EDOCSO), yesterday called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to apprehend vote buyers and sellers in the course of the September 21 Edo State governorship election.
The coordinator general of the group, Comrade Omobude Agho, who stated this at a press conference in Benin, said it believes that when the citizens get it right through the ballot, crime and criminality will naturally be tackled.
“We hope that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission can for once wake up to one of its major responsibilities by channeling its energy to chase after vote buyers and sellers during this election which is more of national sabotage than chasing after ‘yahoo boys'”, Omobude said.
He also urged the security agencies not to be used by political parties to rig the election but to allow the will of the people prevail because power belongs to the people.
Omobude added that Edo State is known for its vibrancy and that the continuous growth and development of democracy rests on the collective and shared responsibility of the people and it must demonstrate the will of the majority of the people and not that of a few persons in public institutions.
He said the civil society being the consciousness of the society, they will not allow anything less in this forthcoming governorship election.
He said the group will use its network across the 18 local government areas of the state to ensure all concerned play by the rules.
According to him “We shall ensure that this election is done in the most tranquil and transparent circumstances where nobody, however highly placed he may be, shall not be allowed to truncate the will of the people this time around.
“We therefore insist that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) give Edo people assurance by its actions and activities that, it is ready to conduct a free, fair and credible governorship election in Edo state.”
The coordinator general, while faulting the recent shootings at the Benin Airport where a Police officer lost his life, urged the Inspector General of Police to carry out investigations to unravel those behind the dastardly act.
He called on the various political parties in the election to focus on issue-based politics rather than engaging in mudslinging.
“Verbal attacks must be discouraged as it is capable of breeding bloody violence and eternal hate among supporters, instead we encourage that manifestos must be compulsorily documented and freely made available to citizens for record and reference purposes.
“Candidates are expected to speak to issues and stop playing to the gallery during public outings and should call their online supporters to order as the verbal attacks are becoming more worrisome these days,” Omobude added.
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