The election had been postponed. In many other states, it was the end of the matter. At least for the day. But it was not so in Ekiti. It was the beginning of an inquest.
Polling booth to polling booth and residence to residence in the various localities across the entire 3 senatorial districts and 16 local governments in the state, the analysis of the disappointment wrought by the postponement and possibilities of Monday (today) went on almost till the dusk of Saturday.
Questions like: what actually happened ?; why did the INEC helmsman have to cancel the entire exercise because of far less than 30 percent lapses?; were there no logistics at all or that the logistics were a farce; who is the essential Attahiru Jega who has been very well reputed but has turned out effete?; why this disturbing closeness of Monday (today) again if the entire months of preparations could bring no less a consequence than a national(?), I mean, global embarrassment and award-winning shame;
Is the fixture not brash, rash and slovenly, following well in the shoddy steps of previous preparations? All these kept surfacing from enlightened conversations of tinder charged residents of Ado-Ekiti.
There actually are so many issues around the postponement than could be meaningfully handled by a professorial explanation and far more consequences than could conceivably have been foreshadowed by INEC.
What magic of logistics would replace the wasted election materials and add on them extra consignments to sufficiently go round the nearly 8,900 wards across the 36 states of the federation in less than 24 hours!
They also imagined the cost of election monitoring by local and international observers and the logistics of security. In short, the entire cost of a repeat show of the national assembly elections.
As early as 8 o’clock in Ado-Ekiti, intending voters were seen sitting and discussing at designated polling centres, awaiting the arrival of polling agents for the pre-voting accreditation.
Although the agents came behind appointed time, the intending voters formed a queue and maintained decency all through the accreditation and commencement of voting till the hammer of disgrace fell a little after midday. The reports across the federation confirmed that the Ekiti experience replicates everywhere, proving the point that Nigerians are indeed tired of the present and yearn for a change that will institute a meaningful lease.
Further, there was, once again, on display the infinitely elastic tolerance level of Nigerians. No report of physical protest for an affront on the collective value of the citizens; no report of barricades on the highways, burning of tyres and other destructive shows of outrage.
No report of a hunger strike among any class, clan or group, although a stomach that has been famishing needs no hunger again. If I may ask, what hunger can be worse than the perennial denials we all have got well accustomed.
A sad point of discovery, however, was the strange attitude of the Ekiti state INEC staff who would not offer explanations concerning the announcement early in the day of the election postponement in Ekiti central senatorial district even before the Jega jigsaw. The officials tried and succeeded in blocking access to the REC, perhaps on the insistence of the REC himself. Does this tell of the temperament of the INEC officials in the state and what to expect today?
In all, the citizens hope that the story line will change next Saturday. They hope by evening they would not be licking wounds of bruises sustained in the aftermath of another postponement.
