Coalition of Yoruba NGOs warns against violence at governorship election

The Yoruba Self-Determination Coalition (YSDC) on Saturday called on political gladiators and the electorate to eschew violence at the March 11 governorship and House of Assembly elections in Southwest states.

Spokesman of the group, Mr Alex Omotehinse, made the call in Lagos at a news conference organised by the coalition.

The coalition also called on INEC to be fair and be transparent in its operations.

“We call on political gladiators to stop heating the polity and threatening our existence as a sovereign nation.

“This call is imperative based on our members’ field surveys, international reports and media reportage in relation to the Feb. 25 presidential and National Assembly elections.

“We call on INEC as umpire to be fair to all, and conduct free and transparent election that can stand the test of time.

“We call on all security agents that will be on duty to be impartial and to discharge their duties as enshrined in the Electoral Law.

“We also call on all political office seekers to be law-abiding and to stop over-heating the polity and seek redress through legal process in case of any discrepancy,’’ he said.

Omotehinse added that the coalition, as a participatory organ in the Nigeria project, observed that the Feb. 25 presidential election had thrown up diverse opinions, especially among Lagosians.

According to him, the outcome of the presidential election was not acceptable to some, while non-indigenes saw it as a confirmation of their presence in the political space of the state.

“Ours is not to be drawn in for or against the position of the people, but to shape the minds of Nigerians, irrespective of their gender, religion, tribe or ethnicity to eschew violence, intimidation and harassment of one another.

“We call for harmonious and peaceful co-existence.

“YSDC is aware of tribal sentiments put in the public domain, especially in Lagos (Yoruba/Igbo dichotomy) towards the March 11 governorship and state assembly elections by political actors to gain sympathy from electors.

“This is invariably heating the polity and may cause voter apathy, and disfranchising Lagos residents from performing their civic responsibility as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution,’’ he said.

Omotehinse urged constituted authorities to address the growing tension, especially in Lagos State so as to disabuse the minds of the people.

He said that the coalition had mobilised its members and like minds to be on the lookout across states in the southwest to forestall violence.

“We have mobilised our members to maintain peace and order and rise in unison to defend the people in case of those hell-bent on causing chaos and mayhem.

“Ours is to defend the defenceless and the oppressed,’’ he stressed.

He said that the group had written a letter to the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Mr Idowu Owohunwa on the need for the police to regard election duty as a Constitutional role that requires seriousness.

According to him, YSDC is a mass-based organisation guided by Oodua philosophy, equipped with intellectual capability and armed with credibility.

He said the YSDC remains a conglomerate of different Yoruba NGOs founded mainly to defend the interests of the Yoruba.

Omotehinse added that the coalition also aimed at advancing cultural heritage and promote socio-economy and fundamental rights of Yoruba men, women and every Nigerian as enshrined in the Constitution.

Some members of the coalition at the news conference took turns to charge leaders of political parties not to regard the election as a do-or-die affair.