Fadahunsi, Shekwolo: Is Democracy Imperilled?

More than forty-eight hours after the Kuje Area Council Chairman, Samuel Danjuma Shekwolo, was caught on camera threatening to chase out of the area residents who failed to vote for the ruling APC, there has been no report of his arrest, let alone of his prosecution.

In a video that has since gone viral, Shekwolo was seen saying, “I have said in my area council, it’s either you’re doing APC or leave the area council. I am not arguing with you. With confidence, I am saying it. You know why? I cannot have the minister and president doing for us what they are doing on the day of election, you now come and say you want to match me. I will not agree. It is either you are with us, or you are not here.”

Before Shekwolo’s threat, we had Senator Francis Fadahunsi (Osun East, APC), who brazenly asked his APC supporters in Osun state to kill members of the Accord party during the Osun governorship poll, which the ruling party eventually lost.

Addressing his supporters, Fadahunsi said: “From now on, whenever you see Accord members, kill them. I authorise you to kill them. They have wives and children, too. This is a Federal Government election. On election day, even if they come with voter cards, we won’t allow them to vote.”

While Fadahunsi was invited, briefly quizzed, and eventually asked to go back home by the police, Shekwolo is moving freely, claiming his statement was taken out of context.

Why have the relevant security agencies not arrested Shekwolo and commenced proceedings to prosecute him and Fadahunsi? Could the silence be because they are members of the ruling party? Do the security agencies need to be goaded into taking action against those who undermine our democracy?

Shekwolo and Fadahunsi’s threats remind us of a similar one by House of Reps member Alhassan Ado Doguwa, who, in the build-up to the 2023 polls, was caught on video threatening to deal ruthlessly with voters who did not support the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Resorting to hate speech, insults and threats by some politicians poses serious impediments to the conduct of free, fair and credible elections. Such actions contribute significantly to voter apathy, which the country has continued to witness in each election cycle.

While the country is facing severe, life-threatening challenges arising from a worsening economic crisis and a deplorable state of security, with kidnapping for ransom and other high-profile criminal activities making life brutish for most Nigerians, some politicians are determined to win the election by all means.

It is clear. When people are denied the right to make a choice freely, without let or hindrance, it is anything but democracy. When the decision about who to vote for, or whether to vote, is influenced or engineered by threats, we have clearly defeated the essence of democracy.

Nigerian voters, wherever they may be, must be free to choose who governs them. No politician has the right to coerce people into voting for him or his political party.

Perhaps the time is right to open a hall of shame for all politicians and, indeed, any Nigerian who, through his words or actions, intimidates voters under whatever guise.

The greater challenge is for the security agencies. Whenever the nation, especially the security agencies, looks the other way while someone brazenly engages in what is clearly electoral violence and voter intimidation, it provides incentives for more people to do the same. As a newspaper, we believe the nation cannot afford to tolerate such rhetoric without consequences.

Therefore, the apparent conspiracy of silence among security operatives is very dangerous because it will incentivise others to do the same. We are tempted to believe that, as the campaigns begin, the nation is likely to witness more of this rhetoric, some of which may not even reach the public eye and will go unreported.

Fundamentally, ahead of the 2027 elections, it is crucial for the relevant security agencies to ensure that any politician who commits, incites, or threatens violence is held to account.

It is essential that the nation set a good example to deter those who wish to do the same. The best place to begin is by arresting and prosecuting Senator Fadahunsi and Chairman Shekwolo.