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An international election observer, Comrade Ajesegun Aluko, has challenged Nigerian leaders and electoral officers to learn from the just-concluded Liberia presidential election, saying that the country's electoral system was more reliable than that of Nigeria.
Aluko stated that the present electoral laws in Nigeria could not guarantee free, fair and credible elections to elect the right candidates into elective offices, lamenting that winning condition for presidential election is too simple and liberal.
He said: "It is not sufficient for a country of over 150 million population, over 250 ethnic groups and uncountable tribes to be using simple majority and one-third of two-third votes of the country for any presidential election winner".
Aluko, who was part of the election observers of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for the recently-concluded Liberia election, said Nigeria needed a tougher winning condition for presidential elections.
Speaking with OSUN DEFENDER on Monday in an interview, Aluko stressed that Nigeria is far behind Liberia in terms of credible elections, maintaining that electoral laws of the country were painstakingly drafted and executed on election day.
Nigerian electoral officers must be ready to accept their mistakes and make corrections immediately. This was part of the reasons Liberia had credible elections," he added.
Aluko lamented what he called shoddy voters' registration exercise, saying Nigeria could not conduct credible elections with "rush-rush" voters' registration programme in which many eligible voters were denied registration.
He therefore called on the Chairman of the Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Attahiru Jega, to assist the country's electoral system with the experience he gathered from the Liberia elections as an observer.
Osun Defender