POLITICAL ACTORS AND THE GOD FACTOR IN THE ELECTORAL PROCESS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

A Free and Fair electoral process is considered a fulcrum on which any democracy stands. Therefore both the leaders and the electorates spare no energy to ensuring that the process is based on seamless transaction with a continuity of management. The Nigerian democracy is not oblivious of this international accepted best practice and seems to keeping itself within the ambit. However, glaring ethnic and religious factors of hegemonic nature of some sections of the polity have over the years obstructed a genuine electoral process and by extension a peaceful democracy. This paper investigates the above in the face of current insecurity and threat to national unity as being orchestrated from almost all fronts of national life. The Paper aims at exposing schism which fraught electoral brews and at the same time brings to the center, the immediate, middle and long term benefits of fraudulent free process. To achieve this aim, both phenomenological and descriptive methods are employed to denigrate the prevailing albatross of the Nigerian electoral process and the capacity of the “God Factor” to strengthen or damage democracy in a lucid account. The findings of the paper include, that a fair electoral process is worthy of the political class support if only the prospects tilt in their favor. Their acclaimed support for credible elections is thus pretentious and deceitful as all of them are complicit in electoral malpractices. Finally, this paper postulates that the agent of the “God Factor” as a matter of duty should distance itself from sectionalism and religious intolerance in the national life. Furthermore, the gains of fairness in the electoral process should be conversed vigourously while using advantages and positions as shapers of public opinions.