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THERE are so much politicking going on in the country and the rhetoric and propaganda have been heating up the polity with the general elections barely four months away.
The politicians are busy struggling for power even when it is obvious that most of them do not merit a second chance in the corridors of power.
In Nigeria today, hype on economic and political Issues has kept the populace busy to the extent they forget about the less privileged. For instance there has been public outcry over vote buying which has become prevalent in our elections.
Thus trend is however not new because in the 2015 general election we saw how in the full glare of the security apparatus, some youths at Ogbe quarters in Benin City made frantic efforts to ensure that voters only cast their votes for their candidates.
A Journalist earned some few slaps from the hoodlums for daring these indian hemp smoking youths when he tried to insist on voting for his own candidate. The problem began when they requested to see who he had voted for before dropping the voter’s card inside the ballot box.
While some persons were made to swallow the bitter pill of accepting the N2,000 cash offered and vote their candidate, those who refused to dance to their tune were disenfranchised because they refused to compromise or sell their votes and conscience. It is then obvious that the vote buying syndrome did not just start With the Osun and Ekiti state governorship election.
We have heard many views on how to curb vote buying and the implications for our democratic journey. However, it is clear that the desperation for power has made some politicians believe that with their ill gotten money they can buy the peoples votes on election day and the highest bidder will take the day. We saw It happen at the party primaries across the states.
In any case, If Nigerians are truly sincere with themselves, especially the umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, the solution to this vote buying is for them to ensure that the voting pattern is made secret.
Away from politics, there are issues of immense importance, which should take our time and attention and that is reaching out to the less privileged In our midst.
It is sad that some people can afford to spend so much money to seek for power while several persons are wallowing in poverty, deprivation and hopelessness amongst their midst.
It was no doubt in response to meet the plight of the orphans and children with special needs, that the Chief Judge of Edo State, Justice Esohe Frances lkponmwen led the Judiciary in the state on a charity walk to charilove centre to identify with these categories of persons and give a token to them.
In the words of the Chief Judge who was accompanied by Judges, magistrates and other judiciary staff, it was the lord that laid it in her heart to visit the Charliove centre of disadvantaged and marginalized children.
“As I thought of the usual charity walk to open the legal year, the lord put it in my heart that we should not just be seen as punishing those who offend in the society, but the judiciary as a whole must also be seen as serving the community. I then thought we should pay a visit to Project Charilove and give a token of what we have. ‘
“We have all come and we have seen. When we are in our little corner we grumble a lot about how hard things are. But if we move out to see what people are going through, especially children who from no fault of theirs are born with certain disabilities, you will want to stop and think about their plight and give to ensure they have a better life. Many of them from what I have read, when some people have children with disabilities, they lock them in the house or throw them away so that people will not laugh at them. The mentality of our society is such that when anything happens to anybody, the thinking is that it is because of the evil the person has done“
“But as an enlightened arm of the government, we should begin to partner with other arms of the society that this children who are born with disability is no fault of theirs and we need to support them.”
The founder and coordinator of Charilove centre, Christopher Omusi who had earlier condemned the vote buying and election malpractice by politicians noted that such practices does not mean well for the people in the country as such action result in dare consequences for Nigeria and organs such as Charilove in particular and humanity at large.
“I wish to state categorically that any individual or government that encourages and promotes vote buying and election malpractices does not mean well for the people of this country. Such individual or government is largely satanic and can only end up creating a society that is utterly deformed and disabled.
“I pray that the Judiciary will in the name of God do its best to ensure that people do not drag Nigeria to that awful state. I thank Edo state Judiciary for finding Charilove as a place to channel its maiden and historic walk. It is certainly divinely inspired. God has used Edo state Judiciary today to uplift our drooping spirit and to keep our charilove hope alive.
“Your coming here: physically means a whole lot more to charilove than any award from anywhere in the world. Thank you for coming to help wipe some of our over flowing tears, not essentially for ourselves but for our country Nigeria,” he added.
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