By Emmanuel Aziken, Political Editor

The drama that played out before the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC finally postponed the Edo State governorship election earlier scheduled for today is another demonstration of the fledgling state of the country’s democracy.

Ize-Iyamu and Obasek

In deciding to postpone the election, the commission pointed at the still murky “intelligence” reports about a potential breach in security in some states, Edo State inclusive, as claimed by the police and the Department of State Services, DSS.

Though no specific intelligence was cited, the security chiefs left the election management body with no doubt that there would be no security agents available to provide security for the election. Indeed, when the security agencies first issued the statement calling for the postponement, the body language of some senior officials of INEC was to forge ahead with the election irrespective of the consequences.

However, hours after the commission disclosed on Thursday that it would forge ahead with the election, reality, it seemed, dawned on the electoral body. Without security men to police the ballots and keep the thugs at bay, the election could turn into a farce.

The different reactions of the two major political parties to the postponement of the election also seemed to underscore perceptions that the postponement was another intervention into the nation’s electoral programme by the security agencies. The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP was livid, describing the action as a plot by the All Progressives Congress, APC to gather steam to restrategise to avoid defeat.

The APC in its reaction was, however, more understanding of the reasons given for the postponement with its national chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun at first saying he was “stunned, shocked and surprised” with the initial decision to proceed with the election.

The controversy was a reminder of the intervention made by the erstwhile National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd.) just before the scheduled February 2015 general elections. At that time, Dasuki, an appointee of then ruling PDP had pleaded for a six-week shift of the elections to enable the security agencies combat what was claimed as the insurgency that was rooted in the North-East.

Dasuki’s intervention, many alleged at that time, was simply an attempt to use security to buy time to stop the defeat of the PDP government by the then opposition APC. Some believe that the decision of the APC administration to start its cleansing from the security services instead of the equally corruption infested oil industry was an attempt by the APC administration to serve retribution to Dasuki.

Almost two years after, and with positions reversed, the same security concern about the activities of insurgents was again deployed to compel INEC to shift the elections in Edo State. Just as in 2015, the assertion has been that the APC in Edo State was afraid of defeat and stampeded the security agencies to issue the security alert.

However, just as in 2015 when no evidence of a dalliance between the PDP and the security agencies was proved; there is no such evidence of any conspiracy between the APC in Edo State or Abuja and the security agencies to frustrate the will of the electorate in Edo State despite the assertions of the PDP.

The aborted decision by INEC to forge ahead with the election as programmed, to a degree signposted some measure of independence, if not credibility, in the leadership of the election body. For an electoral body that has been largely battered for the spate of inconclusive elections produced under its watch, the initial show of grit was commendable and creditable.

However, the faux pas, again calls to mind the seemingly animalistic predilection of the Nigerian, nay African politician. That security men are needed to guarantee the sanctity of an election speaks of the brutish inclination of the political class, signifying that without the instruments of coercion as wielded by the Army and the Police, that the simple choice of choosing political leaders would end up in fisticuffs. That is a shame!