By Chioma Gabriel, Deputy Editor
Some concerned members of the political class are urging caution across the land following the spate of political violence in parts of the country ahead of next month’s elections.

In Akwa Ibom State alone, about 12 people were killed in two days of mayhem involving supporters of the ACN and PDP in Ikot Ekpene and Uyo.

About 500 brand new tricycles and 200 cars also went with the violence.

Similar violence has been recorded in Gombe, Plateau, Ekiti, Ogun, and Ondo states in the last few days raising tension in the country just a week to the commencement of the elections.

Reacting to the development, Senator John Shagaya, a retired army general and former Internal Affairs Minister cautioned against “do-or-die elections.”

Gen. Shagaya who was a participant at this week’s meeting of Northern Generals on the security situation in the North said:  “the electorate should ensure they abide by the rules of the game or face the consequences.

We need the voters to be very vigilant and ensure they comply with the electoral laws and report any electoral misdeed to the relevant authority.

“Moreover, the security organs that operate during the elections —  the police and the State Security Service, SSS — should  monitor and bring to book,  anybody who deviates from the rule or is caught causing problems or violence or engaging  in acts that could trigger off violence during the elections.

“Apart from being vigilant and doing the right things, we cannot expect free and fair elections to be held in any other way but I foresee  successful elections . We should avoid  “do-or-die” elections by  power-drunk, greedy, inordinate, overambitious and violent-oriented politicians who want to be in power by all means.”

*Blame incumbents – Masari
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Bello Masari blames the situation on incumbents who want to hang on to power by all means.

“ I think those responsible for state security,  that is governors and police should be able to tolerate opposition.

The Justice Uwais’ led Electoral Reform Panel was set up to find lasting solutions  to the teething problems  of  how to reform the electoral system to the satisfaction of Nigerians, the ruling party – the Peoples Democratic Party and opposition political parties, without giving the ruling party an undue advantage over other parties.

But in the bid of many politicians  to clinch elective posts, they recruit youths as their thugs, provide them  with security outfits as well as arms and ammunition in order to achieve their pre-conceived plans.

“During the campaign rallies of CPC, we visited some states in the North but the governors and the  traditional rulers of the states  were deliberately not available. “The governors left town and they obviously instructed the traditional rulers to do the same. In some states, incumbents denied opposition political parties campaign grounds for rallies. In some places, unprecedented violenceerupted.

So, if governors should be tolerant of opposition and stop using police and traditional institutions to stop opposition, there would be hitch-free elections”

*Let’s have issue-based elections – Utomi
Professor Pat Utomi, presidential candidate of Social Democratic Mega Party, SDMP, is confident that  “if elections were based on convincing  issues, rather than desperation for power, violence would be reduced. If politics is for service and  not for power, violence will be reduced.

The desperation for power  will cause people to kill but if politics is about issues, you will not want to hurt anybody.
“ Moreover, the Nigerian political structure  makes politics quite attractive.  Some of the people  in power today were riff-raff  yesterday and they will kill to stay there. People who achieved greatness in their various fields before joining politics will not kill but those who make politics  a means of livelihood would kill to remain in that business.

That is why we need politics of values and character; we need issue-based politics to  reduce electoral violence.

*The violence is worrisome – Oyovbaire
Former Information Minister, Professor Sam Oyovbaire said: “political violence is a worrisome development and political office contestants are to be blamed for this. Those with incumbent power want to entrench themselves and they feel threatened by opposition. Very many of them didn’t have the will of the people but they want to sustain themselves in power.

“Primaries are not properly conducted in many places and some of the protests come from people who have lost out. So, our politicians need to restrain themselves and bear in mind that if things are destroyed, nobody would be in power and to sustain power, nobody should be threatened.

The electoral umpire itself needs to do its home work. INEC at the top is not the same thing with INEC at the bottom.  At the bottom level are  those who execute the directions from the top. They  are low-level officers involved in the  process of counting votes and the returning officers .

These are  not clean and they fall to the  urge to make money from  politicians. INEC should therefore hold sessions with this level of officers  to ensure that those recruited restrain themselves from  taking bribe from politicians.

*Politicians should get worried – Uba Ahmed
Former Senator and Minister, Alhaji Uba Ahmed said: “When  well-structured  politics don’t exist and  no national  issue is  being debated, what will come up is violence. A normal politician should be worried about what is happening in the Arab world. Oil is becoming hard to come by and desperation is breeding violence.

The West cannot get oil in Venezuela and where they get to buy, they meet stiff competition from China. So, the politicians should be worried.

They should be thinking of the security we have in this country but unfortunately, they don’t see us as next victims. Politicians are just after office. That is why you see some politicians moving  from one party to another, not on principle, but for  the quest for power and money. When every citizen is politically alienated, there will be a  revolution.

That was what happened in Cuba and  in China that brought about a revolution and that is what is  happening to the Arab world today. Nigeria should be wary of the situation in the Arab world and take the issue of security seriously.”