The National Peace Committee (NPC), has bemoaned the culture of vote-buying, intimidation, and voter apathy that characterized the November 11 off-cycle governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states.
Abdulsalami Abubakar, the chairman of the committee and former Head of State, expressed this regret in a statement he made on Thursday.
He noted that such development will eventually lead to the emergence of corrupt leaders.
“We are not unaware of the glitches recorded during the elections. Sadly, we have noted that some of the old ways remain, and ordinary people continue to collude with corrupt members of society to stall the processes of our elections.
“The persistence of the culture of vote-buying, intimidation, and voter apathy, among others, is disturbing. A democratic culture will only grow if we participate in cleaning up the process of our elections, because in the end, we are the victims.
“The corruption of the process will lead to the emergence of corrupt leaders if we collude with merchants of corruption,” Mr Abubakar said.
While appealing to aggrieved parties to seek redress in court, Mr Abubakar commended the electorate for defying obstacles and threats by performing their civic duties.
“We encourage our people to remain resilient and to use our experiences to correct the mistakes in the process of our elections,” the former head of state added.
The committee also commended all critical stakeholders who worked round the clock to ensure that the elections were free, fair and credible.
“Our appreciation goes to the staff of INEC, security agencies, traditional rulers, leaders of political parties, non-governmental organisations, civil society groups, the media, and others who ensured the success of the elections in the three states,” the statement added.
