2023 polls: Why victims of electoral violence must be compensated

A civil society organization, Free Nigeria Movement, has called on the federal government to compensate all victims of electoral violence before, during and after the 2023 general elections.

The group made the call as part of its demands on the conduct of the just-concluded poll in Nigeria,

Addressing a press conference on Monday in Abuja, the convener of the group, Moses Ogidi-Paul, insisted that the group was not satisfied with the conduct of the general election.

He said, “The events of the past few days marked by vile desperation by those whose contribution to our country is a steady output of violence, distortion of national ethos, ineptitude and disillusioned governance, to say the least, are beyond disgraceful. We are witnesses to the naked dance of the brass of impunity on a national scale with the desperation to gag opposing voices and foist a predetermined narrative.

“It merits saying in the light of these events that our country is not a military state and must not be allowed to run at the dictatorial pace of a junta. A modest search through history and you will find that cultures and societies that endorse criminality and idolize criminals soon perish in the fires of extinction. We cannot let our country die, however broken, scarred or traumatized we may be. For Nigeria is our mother.

“We owe her care and protection and not abandon her to incestuous rape by corrupt politicians through our collective silence. Suffice it to say that whatever gold silence has amassed since February 25th, 2023, has lost its ethical value. Any attempt to further explore it would amount to dealing in blood as the cost is the lives, faith and hope of poor Nigerians who we represent today on this table.

“In the last twenty-one – days, we have made a consistent call for the cancellation of the presidential election, risking our lives amidst threats of attack by political thugs and violence merchants, some of whom have since camped at the Unity Fountain. We have made presentations to the governments of the United States, and Britain, and country representatives of the United Nations, European Union and ECOWAS Commission. We have also held a press conference to clarify our position on the declaration of an Interim National Government when the ill-planned attempt by spin doctors to frame it as a call for a military takeover began to build heat in the polity. We have also held national prayers for the nation. But above all, we have maintained a non-violent stance in our bid to seek redress for our demands.

“Our resolve is built on truth, faith and hope and on the risky, if not suicidal conviction, that illegality will always birth illegality.”