Citizen engagement on the march to 2019

Ripples of the recent ward congresses of the ruling All Progressives Party continued to spiral into the second-week post-event as the party committed to holding its congress in June. Many unpleasant things occurred as part of the ward congresses across the country. There were also some very positive developments.
The elections were tumultuous in states such as Imo, Rivers, Anambra, Oyo, Ekiti and Kaduna. Violence marred the effort in Rivers State, a disorder so severe it affected another arm of government, the judiciary, with the exchange of gunfire in court premises in Port Harcourt. The elections in Ekiti and Oyo had to be rescheduled, yet leaving many unsatisfied.
One substantial positive came out of the developments. The ward elections of the ruling party went a long way in entrenching democracy in the land. In many instances, voters showed the red card to bigwigs of the party who failed to perform or carry citizens along in their plans and actions.
The electorate served a big mug of hemlock to persons such as Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State and Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State. Wresting the party structure from the governors reprised the national electoral victory of the APC in 2015. It showed that the message of change through the ballot is one that citizens are willing to implement at all levels.
It is just as well that the intra-party contests are pointing in the direction of greater citizen participation in the electoral process. This newspaper notes with approbation efforts by citizens in various groups to mobilise for involvement in the 2019 elections. On social media and across many other platforms, citizens are sharing memes, symbols and infographics urging people to register and obtain their Permanent Voters Cards (PVC).
BusinessDay recently published the list of voter registration centres in Lagos as part of this process of citizen mobilisation for participation. Other media platforms are doing so as well. We urge our readers to ensure they play their role as citizens by getting their PVCs.
Democracy requires more than voting, however. Registering to participate and indeed voting are foundational. Citizens need to do more as part of entrenching democracy.
Nigeria’s democracy of the 4th Republic would clock 20 years in 2019. It is the longest stretch that the country has witnessed of continuous democratically elected governments. As the years go by, many learnings are coming forth for all stakeholders in the democratic process.
One of the learnings is that citizens can make the ballot work. With a determined effort, citizens can mobilise to prove through their votes the concept of democracy as government of the people freely chosen by the electorate.
Another is that there is power in the ballot. Nigeria for the first time effected a change of government at the centre through the vote in 2015. It was the culmination of changes through the poll happening at lower levels. It is encouraging that the trend has continued as witnessed in even local government elections, and party ward elections. We are growing our sinews in democracy and democratic values.
A large number of candidates have lined up to contest for the presidency. We hope that this replicates at all levels, thus offering the citizen variety and choice. The higher the political interest the critical public shows, the more the political participation and electoral turnout.
Voting is a right and a duty. Citizens also have the task of educating themselves about the roles of various arms of government and their responsibilities. Such knowledge is critical to ensure that citizens make demands on the holders of public offices informed by what is right, deserved and actionable. There is also the obligation on citizens to play their part through engagement.
Multilateral institutions such as the World Bank have been in the forefront in canvassing the importance of citizen engagement. Engagement means citizens advocate and help to make public institutions more transparent, accountable and effective. They contribute to the policy process by submitting ideas for projects and programmes.
The middle class plays a significant role here. There is a call on the middle classes to be more involved in Nigeria’s democracy. Register to vote. Come out during elections. Engage the process as the ones who have knowledge and access to the significant players at all levels from local government to state and federal.
The middle classes run the various institutions of society. Their involvement is critical for the continued sustenance of our democracy. Onward to 2019.