By Nseobong Okon-Ekong and Stanley Nkwazema
There have been mixed reactions from different election monitoring groups that observed Saturday’s governorship contest in Bayelsa State.
Many of them condemned the heavy presence of security agents, saying it was a pointer that Nigeria’s democracy is still not civil.
Since the return to civil rule in Nigeria in 1999, it has become an accepted practice to have Nigerian and international observer groups accredited by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to carry out unfettered assessment of the process.
The Executive Director, Sustainable Initiative for Nurturing Growth (SING), Mr. Idris Usman, said his organisation’s engagement with Bayelsa goes back to 2015 when it researched and documented a first-of-its-kind report on violence attending elections in Bayelsa.
“Our report traced the victims, identified the perpetrators, sponsors and communities where these violence were…
Source: Thisday Newspaper
