2019 Polls: Group Declares Zero Tolerance For Vote Buying, Election Violence

Less than 24 hours to the coming presidential and National Assembly elections, a non governmental organization, Women’s Situation Room Nigeria has declared zero tolerance against vote buying and election violence in, urging Nigerians to eschew any activities capable of causing crisis before, during and after election.

The Group made this known at a Forum tagged Youths Dialogue and Women’s Stakeholder Meeting held in Bishop’s Court Hall Oke Ayepe, Osogbo.

The Theme of meeting which was organised by Women’s Situation Room Nigeria is “Building Collaborative Peace towards Improving Gender Equality and Women Empowerment.”

Speaking, Mrs. Ojewumi Oluwatoyin and Mr. Akande Fidelix expressed deep Sadness over Political, Economic and Social Marginalization which Nigerian youths were subjected to, especially in the area of vivacious recycling of poor Leaders, a situation they described as a bad taste for Democracy.

The duo noted that to achieve a balanced society and its attendant peace was a function of full engagement of the youths in the body of politics and creation of sense of belong them.

Also speaking one after the other, Mr. Segun Makinde, a seasoned Journalist, Mr. Taiwo Joshua of All Peoples’ Congress and Mr. Raheem Taofeek of Peoples’ Democratic Party commended initiatives of the Women’s Situation Room Nigeria more importantly Justice Development and Peace Makers’ Centre for the positive collaborative efforts towards orientating and re-orientating Youths in order to live beyond life of poor self-esteem and violence.

While promising to have a redirecting focus and put on garb of better attitudinal change as well as become agents of positive values more to Nigeria by taking all the discussed Recommendations to their various Environments as matter Urgency. Added that they were ready to constructively prevent any manner of Vote buying and Election violence in this coming Polls through voluntary door to door Campaign against such behaviour.

“Youths have been violated for far too long in all schemes of all things as a result of level of our blind ignorance but we have woken up from our Slumbers into reality. Democracy has suffered too much because of our Negligence but end has come to it.

As we have agreed to take our rightful Place in the space of Democracy doing the needful and saying No to Election violence, sponsored evil Machinery and Vote buying, they said.”

In their separate contributions, Mrs. Grace Oyalabu, Olori Tokunbo Falade-Fatila and Juliana Osadare of group Women under the umbrella of Women’s Situation Room Nigeria reiterated their support and commitment to Women’s equal participation in Governance of Nigeria, saying it has become necessary for Women to be also seen and heard in the Political Space of Nigeria for sustainable developments.

They also vowed to stop the tide of Vote buying and Election Malpractices at their various Capacities and reassured Nigerians that Peace shall prevail during and after the Electionss.

While speaking the State Coordinator of the Women’s Situation Room Nigeria, Mrs. Juliet Akande explained that, the essence of the forum was to chat a way forward for Nigeria and increase scale of participation by Nigerians during the Polls and fair play among the Political Parties and Allies, most of all to set a pace of Peace, Justice, Equity and love in Nigeria even beyond this coming Elections.

She noted further it was also designed to promote Gender and Age Equality that was becoming more corroded in the Nigeria’s System of Government