Nigeria Content Online

In theory, rigging
will be more difficult than ever in 2011, because of a combination of
factors: unprecedented INEC reforms, and renewed (technology-aided)
citizen involvement.

If the computerised
voters’ register (backed up by voters’ cards) is what it claims to be –
an accurate database of eligible Nigerian voters, certified by
finger-print and thus (theoretically) tough to manipulate – then
multiple voting, fraudulent finger-printing and inflation of numbers
have all been stripped of their allure, as the database should easily
detect them. But politicians being what they are, are ‘never-say-never’
people. We will probably witness the deployment of brand new rigging
strategies – e-rigging perhaps? – next month.

Let’s keep in mind
the fact that Nigeria’s parties are generally ethically
interchangeable, and that as a rule, parties will seek to rig in their
strongholds. In his widely-reported speech on election rigging,
delivered last year, former Cross River Governor, Donald Duke, said
that “[fraudulent finger-printing] is not a PDP thing… it’s a
Nigerian thing… it happens throughout the country, whether it’s
Action Congress or APGA, it’s the same thing. We are all the same.” In
all instances and mechanisms of election fraud, voter intimidation is
the common denominator – to manipulate people’s votes to the maximum,
you have to keep them away from the voting centres, or keep the voting
materials away from them. This often depends on the active
collaboration of the Nigeria Police Force, which, sadly, has always
seemed to make itself available to the highest bidder at election time.
Wole Soyinka once described the Second Republic Inspector-General of
Police, Sunday Adewusi, as “an uncouth, power-crazed police chief, who
promptly inaugurated a scorched earth policy in order to ensure his
master’s second tenure as Nigeria’s Head of State.”

Nigeria still has
tens of thousands of police officers serving as orderlies to ‘big’ men
and women around the country. These underpaid officers are more than
willing to assist their ‘bosses’ on election day – snatching ballot
boxes, providing cover for the snatching of ballot boxes, and generally
harassing opponents. There are also armies of disgruntled youth across
the country available to be cheaply used. We now know that many of
today’s ‘militants’ were originally employed and armed by desperate
politicians seeking to fight (literally) electoral battles. One piece
of good news coming from INEC is that it has vowed to cancel elections
anywhere there is violence. The downside is that parties could
instigate violence in opponents’ strongholds in a bid to cause
cancellations.

The most crucial
defining-factor in these elections would probably be technology. Not
only has it empowered INEC (again, in theory) via the computerised
voters’ register; it also promises to transform the electoral
experience from the perspective of the ordinary voter. Recall how the
video recording (most likely from a phone) from the Uzoma Okere case
‘immortalised’ what would have been just another random act of military
brutality, and served as a focal point for the crystallisation of
citizen anger. The level of transparency crucial at election centres
requires the free use of electronic devices by citizens.

The IG of Police,
Hafiz Ringim, was recently quoted as announcing a ban on mobile phones
and electronic devices at polling centres (the police has since then
invoked the “quoted out of context” rule). Professor Soyinka, probably
recalling the Adewusi era, promptly described that directive as
“nonsense”, “illegal” and “stupidity”. Need we say more?

A number of
technological tools have recently been unveiled, to assist in creating
the conditions for transparent elections. Revoda is one. Find out more
about it here: http://www.revoda.org/, and please spread the word. It
works via mobile phones, and “allows voters to report as independent
citizen observers from their respective polling units across Nigeria.”
ReclaimNaija.net also provides an election monitoring platform for
citizens. There will, of course, be the sceptics, wondering about the
utility of online tools in a country plagued by illiteracy and low
Internet penetration. My advice: look beyond the Internet platforms,
and realise that behind them are people – real people. (The ‘Nigerian
Election Coalition’ describes itself as “a virtual network backed by
real networks”).

People and
technology are coming together in unprecedented ways, to make a
difference. It may be a small difference today, but what Tunisia and
Egypt have shown us is that the journey of a thousand voices sometimes
begins with a single click.

There are also the
independent “observer” schemes. INEC is introducing “parallel observers
who shall document election results independently and forward same to
the commission for comparative analysis”. And there are initiatives
like the Nigerian Election Vigilantes Organisation (NEVO –
http://nigerianelectionvigilantes.ning.com/), and the Nigerian Election
Coalition (http://nigeriaelections.org/); determined to fight rigging
in 2011.

No one said rig-proofing Nigeria would be easy. But, here’s a
chance. For Nigerians itching for their own ‘revolution’, perhaps this
is an opportunity to replicate Tahrir Square (in terms of citizen
involvement) at individual polling centres across the country. The
North African wind may finally be here, waving a Nigerian flag. And if
you listen hard enough, you may hear it whispering: “The Elections They
Are a-Changing’!”