Pyrates Confraternity tasks INEC on delivering credible, free, fair elections to Nigerians

…..To organize a Townhall meeting

The National Association of Sea-dogs popularly known as Pyrates Confraternity (Jolly Rogers and Hudson Decks) advised Independent be National Electoral Commission (INEC) to make sure they are impartial in their conduct of the coming election and ensure the vote of the people count at the coming election.

The admonition was given by their Capoon, Mr Olufemi Adesope, at a media briefing tagged “Our Votes Count Campaign” on Friday, in Ibadan, Oyo state.

Adesope said that INEC should stand as umpire with impartiality while conducting the coming election and have the understanding that will be responsible to all Nigerians whatever the outcome of the election.

He further urged electorate to vote with their conscience knowing that they will have another opportunity in the next four years.

Adesope discouraged Nigerians invoving themselves in selling and buying of their vote stressed that they would have to bear the brunt when the repercussion start to appear on them

He added that OurVotesCount initiative will be delivered using the citizens’ summit noting that it aims to achieve increased understand of citizens’ involvement in politics and governance.

Adesope averred that “We have just concluded first of the campaign program, which is the PVC collection monitoring exercise.

“The NAS PCE has deployed it member across the flagship to monitor the collection of PVC at various INEC offices across the country.

He said “Across Ibadan and in ogbomosho in Oyo state where we did a local monitoring of the PVC collection in Ibadan North local government, Ibadan NorthEast local government, Oluyole local government, Ibadan Northwest local government, Ogbomosho North and Ibadan South local government we observed some discrepancies in the PVC collection process.

“This discrepancies include hoarding of PVC cards from over-zealous INEC official and non availability of PVC card even while citizens bio-data were seen vividly on the INEC data base.

“In addition we found that some INEC officials employed the services of the Nigeria police force and Vigilante groups to block citizens from gaining access to the PVC collections center.

“All this observation raise a concern for us and a full report would release by NAS in due course.

“To further build on the lesson gathered during the PVC collection monitoring exercise, we are planning to organize a Town Hall meeting at Bodija market on the 18th of February 2023.

“This Town hall meeting is to advance our public engagement activity and enlightenment of the generality of the citizens on the electoral process on the importance of their full participation in their attainment of good governance in our society.

“The National Association of Sea-dogs also known as Pyrate Confraternity is a non political organization as a collective we do not pursue the same political objective as members, as a member you can have your preference but as an association we do not have an adopted Presidential Candidate.

“If we mirror between the three Presidential Candidate, we would not be able to take a position to say that this the kind of President that we want but if we mirror it against what we pursue as an organization which is to ensure that we attain an egalitarian society, a just society,a society that work for all and sundry, so we therefore say that the kind of President that we think to move Nigeria forward is that president that believes in our own idea of how the society should look like.

“The president must be just, must be fair, must be able to put the round peg on the round hole, he must be able to jestition ethnicity, nepotism and all of those that is the kind of President the National Association of Sea-dogs would want for Nigeria.

Adesope noted “What has stand on Naira and fuel scarcity as we see today, we empathize with Nigeria our people what they are going through not been in government not a participant in government we might not be able to make categorical statement of what drove all this policy to work of where we are today but we can honestly as an association is that we do not think the country is at in the right shape at this point in time.

“The policy seems not to be working people seem to be going through more hardship, government seems not to be able to track all of this problem and at the end of the day it is the citizens that are bearing the brunt.

He urged “Our stand is that the government must do what is necessary to alleviate the problems they have put the citizens into.

“The campaign for the Vote count Campaign is an unending campaign must of our activities we do we always try to track and document what we are doing and what responses we are getting from people.

“A lot of truly Nigerian truly want a change that is the feelback we get from our last outing.

“We will continue on our engagement for Vote count, it is an ongoing process but for what we have done to date, we are confident that we are in the right direction that is one of the reasons we are also engaging the media to assist us in achieving better traction in taking this campaign to the grassroot.

“If you look at the design of our Vote Count Campaign starting from encouraging people which is the fundamental, which is the foundation for real, starting from encouraging the people to go and collect their PVC to be able to say that on the election day you actually have to come out to vote even before we start talking of counting.

“Addendum to that is the issue of monitoring the vote themselves.

“In the last campaign that we have done, we have also encouraged people after you have voted, monitor but put in mind your safety.

“Use all the resources that you have that are in alignment with the provision of law to monitor the vote after they have been done.

“Our Advise to INEC is that they should be impartial judge.

“All over the world there are benchmarks, election in some countries, you would not even know that anything is going on, every body just walk in cast his vote go back to his work, there is no too much issues about it.

“It is only in Nigeria that we have to close down institutions and do all sort of things to hold election.

“We want INEC to be global in outlook, to do global benchmark.

“Above all they should be impartial and they should know that they are responsible to all Nigerians to some form cabals not to some of political party.

“We are confident that they would do what is needed to do to deliver a good electoral process for the country.

“That is why we also standing up to say that we also monitor the process all through while also enlightening people on what they need to do and engaging media to assist in disseminating the information to people.

“We implore government, particularly the government of Oyo state and Ogun state to continue to do what is necessary and what is needed to ensure that, Lagos/Ibadan expressway is safe for our people.

“The message we have for the people is that they should vote their conscience, they should know candidates that are coming to them and they should put competence and integrity above meal for a day that you have to suffer for four years.

“The idea of vote buying and selling we to discourage it, we it to come to the consciousness of people , how much are you selling the vote?

“Is it enough for you to survive for the four years that you need to re-elect again.

“People should go out there and look at those who have come out and look out for those who have integrity, who have been tested, who have the capacity and been competence to lead them, starting from their wards, from their state Assemblies to federal Assemblies to state governor’s all this people they need to electinto this positions, they should put competence integrity above all consideration, he said.