By Alex Enumah:
The National Commandant of the Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN), Ambassador Dickson Akoh has charged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure elected leaders are held to promises they made to electorates during campaign period.
Akoh was of the opinion that the country could only experience good governance, when there was a mechanism in place by INEC to measure performances of elected leaders alongside their different party’s manifestoes.
Akoh spoke at a public forum to commemorate Nigeria’s 62nd Independence Day celebration in Abuja.
The Peace Corps boss specifically tasked INEC to document manifestoes of all parties and use same to effect checks and balances on leaders that would emerge in the 2023 general elections.
He appealed to the electoral umpire not to limit itself to conducting of elections alone but must be in the forefront of doing follow ups that would make politicians abide and implement their manifestoes to the people.
The Peace Corps boss sought legal back up for INEC to have powers to disqualify individuals and parties from subsequent elections upon being found liable of failure to adhere and implement promises made during electioneering campaign.
“Time has come for leaders to be made responsible through their actions. Holding elected leaders by their words and sanctioned when failed would herald positive responses to governance in the country,” he said.
“Time has come for us as a nation to have well-tailored manifestoes and I challenge INEC to document the promises being made by politicians, those who fail to keep to their freely made promises must be sanctioned before subsequent elections for the country to forge ahead in socio-economic development,” he added.
Besides, Akoh counselled elective office seekers across the country to give manifestoes of their political parties to Youths instead of guns that could disrupt peace and tranquility during elections.
He pleaded with politicians to depart from politics of killings, maiming and destructions and opt for that of development to make the country grow politically, socially and economically.
The Peace Corps Boss disagreed that Nigeria has nothing to show for the 62 years of Independence adding that the fact that people of diverse ethnicity, religion, culture and tradition remain together for 62 years was worthy of celebration.
While observing that countries especially, USSR which was stronger than Nigeria collapsed and separated over little issues, he argued that the fact that Nigeria remains intact in spite of security challenges, political, religious and ethnical differences, calls for celebration.
He therefore urged Nigerians to continue to imbibe and promote Nigeria’s common unity warning that “if we divide, we will no longer have a country called Nigeria”.
