The prelate, who made the call during an education/election observation
event by the Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN), advised that as
Nigerians, especially the Christians prepare for the coming elections;
they should ensure that they are registered, noting, “That this is the
bullet we have to exercise our franchise and bring the rightful people
into power.”
“No Christian should accept money but they should exercise their
franchise and vote the right people into the right positions. If you
accept money to vote, such money is cursed and you have sold your future
to the devil by doing so. So let us vote according to our consciences
and bring in credible people because if you bring in a bad person, you
have succeeded in enslaving yourself for the next four years”, he noted.
While wishing Nigerians hitch a free elections and buoyant economy, he
also went further to say, “I have gone around the country and I felt
happy with places like Akwa Ibom State. If you go there you would see a
performing governor but in some other states, you would regret ever
voting in such a governor. You wonder if such states are part of Nigeria
as everything is dilapidated with no infrastructure to show that
government exists in such states.
“The people live in sorrow and salaries are owed in some states. I
don’t want to mention names and that is callousness on the part of such
government, it is wickedness in its highest level and should not be
condoned in the present Nigeria but the ball stops on the table of the
voters.”
The prelate, who also wished the country a happy Christmas and New Year
celebration ahead, noted further that it is not actually the voting
that matters, but Independent National electoral Commission (INEC)
should ensure that the citizens’ votes count. “They should record
correctly, count correctly and announce results correctly,” Uche noted.
He said the workshop was relevant at the moment, as it will educate
Christians on how to vote properly and make the right choice of people
for leadership positions. He said this was important as it determines
the welfare and wellbeing of the people.
“This workshop is apt and timely. And it is a step in the right direction,” Uche noted.
The Executive Director, Community Life Projects and the Coordinator of
Reclaim Naija, Ngozi Iwere, co-organisers of the event, said the
workshop, which was targeted at top clerics and senior church leaders of
the Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN) focused on civic and voters’
education, preparatory to their leadership role to oversee voters’
education at the grassroots towards 2015 elections.
Explaining why the workshop was focused on clerics, Iwere said, “We
work on electoral transparency and post elections governance issues. So
we are focused on popular participations, which is active citizens
participation and not just voting and election but in making sure that
there is electoral transparency and that the people’s mandates are
protected and that their votes count.
“We also equip the citizens to cooperate with the electoral body INEC
on election day to help the electoral body know where there are issues
on election day so that it can sort things out on time and allow people
to vote freely on election day and also check some of the anomalies that
have always been talked about during the elections,” she said.
