That the 2007 general elections which professor Maurice Iwu umpired was, no doubt, the most rigged polls in Nigeria’s history. It was worse than 2003 which was worse than 1999. Following in this pattern, one can conjecture that unless something clinical is done, 2011 will be worse that 2007, whether Iwu is there or not.
Eastertide is a very solemn, emotive and meditative season and every writer regularly takes off time to ruminate on issues around him or her. The Holy Week (that is the last week of the Lenten season) has always been a very meditative one for me.
The last Friday in Lent – the Good Friday – is the day Christians commemorate the death on the cross of our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Most Christians, especially we Catholics, make it a point to meditate deeply on Good Fridays and to relate the lessons of that day to our daily experiences and situations.
Even non Christians have become familiar with the key facts of the Jesus story, especially how some people of His time, made up stories about Him, ganged up, found subterfuges and concocted plots to do away with Him. Applying huge doses of blackmail, some Jewish religious leaders, legal luminaries and other activists of the time, forced the hands of the Roman colonial authorities to authorize the execution of the innocent Jesus Christ by nailing Him to the cross like a common criminal. Not to talk about how the lies they built up against him were effectively marketed to the preponderant percentage of the gullible population.
However, the story of Jesus has become one with the happiest ending of all stories in the world. He rose again from the dead as a confirmation of His divine and redemptive essence. For, if He had not risen from the dead, as St. Paul had reasoned, our faith – my faith – would have been a hollow ritual. Thank God for this wonderful Easter season, which makes that redemptive mission possible and ever meaningful.
As my meditation continued on the plight of the many people who routinely undergo persecution in their different circumstances, for good and ill, in the hands of people who they serve, my mind panned to Professor Maurice Iwu, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). While not comparing Maurice Iwu with Lord Jesus by any stretch of imagination, I nevertheless note that he is, perhaps, one of the most maligned and crucified persons in Nigeria today. I have no apologies to admit that I have, for a long time, come to believe that Iwu has been largely vilified for wrong reasons.
And even though I have not joined the army of Iwu bashers or the rank of the few people who have, now and then, decided to give him a fair hearing, I have nevertheless always agonized that most people who understand the huge challenges that had always been stationed before those who organize elections in this country, had refused to give him a respite. Even the greenest horns in this our information management business know how easy it is to mobilize against a scapegoat in a troubled situation. That is what has happened to Iwu; that is why he is today hanging on a cross that should have been made for others. I will explain.
That the 2007 general elections which professor Maurice Iwu umpired was, no doubt, the most rigged polls in Nigeria’s history. It was worse than 2003 which was worse than 1999. Following in this pattern, one can conjecture that unless something clinical is done, 2011 will be worse that 2007, whether Iwu is there or not. The reason is that in all those elections, INEC’s roles had been minimal and remained less than 15 percent, everything considered.
culled from Sun News Online