NOA preaches non-violent elections to Lagos residents
By Joseph Eshanokpe Ahead of next year’s general election, the Director, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lagos, Dr. Mustafa Tukur, has urged youths in Mushin,to shun violence during next year’s general
By Joseph Eshanokpe
Ahead of next year’s general election, the Director, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lagos, Dr. Mustafa Tukur, has urged youths in Mushin,to shun violence during next year’s general election.
He gave the advice during the agency’s awareness programme ‘’on election without bitterness during the 2027 general elections’’ at the Mushin Local Government Secretariat.
Tukur said parents should keep a tab on their children to ensure that they were not deployed by unscrupulous politicians to cause mayhem during elections.
He said: “You know, the general election is just about a year from now. And we need to remind our people of the need to maintain peace during, before, during and after elections. As we are progressing into another transition cycle, we need to ginger ourselves. We need to remind ourselves that elections shouldn’t be do or die. Elections shouldn’t be an avenue for us to cause chaos.
“Elections should be an avenue for people to see themselves as the living. We are one Nigeria and we must ensure that we maintain peace before, during and after the election. And we are beginning this campaign in Mushin.
‘’As I told you, this is the first one in the city. We are bringing it to Mushin because we know Mushin is one of the major local governments in Lagos State. It’s very key for the politics in the state. And Mushin is also known to be one of the most volatile local governments. That’s why we are beginning this campaign from here.
“ And you can see, we have stakeholders across the CDC members, the market people, the religious leaders etc. We are trying to use this platform to help us to send the message back home so that people can be aware that election is just around the corner just a year to this time and how people should conduct themselves before, during and after the election.
‘’Let’s also remind ourselves, our children, our family members, that they should not be allowed to be used as cannon fodders by politicians. Nobody should allow himself to be used by the politicians to foment trouble, either before, during or after elections. And ourselves, let’s conduct ourselves in a way that elections shouldn’t be with bitterness.’’
The Secretary to the Mushin Local Government (SLG), Mohammed Yusuf Abiola Basirah, who represented the chairman, said elections should not be a do-or-die affair but rather peaceful.
She advised parents too to caution their children during elections.
Guest speaker, Stephen Awosanya, community orientation expert, urged the participants to take active part in elections to avoid rigging. He said the role of the citizens, the masses, their participation in political development and happiness in their environments cannot be overemphasised.
The people, he said, are very important. ‘’They need to know what is happening in their environment so that they will be able to contribute positively because it is when you participate in any policies of the government, that you will be more convinced and be willing to support.
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‘’You know, it will sort of give the policy a kind of legitimacy. So, governments value the participation of people, their input, and that is why this type of sensitisation is taking place, especially now that we are approaching the election year. It is very important to let people know that politics of bitterness, to disagree, hooliganism aetc, should be done away with. And especially the youth, parents, we should address our children not to engage in such because at the end of the day, the people we are fighting for, campaigning for, will be there and we will forget our children.
‘’So, talk to them. So that they can behave themselves and make sure that when it is time for election, people go to their polls and vote for the candidate of their choice.
Stakeholders agreed that there was the need to avoid election of bitterness and that all hands should be on deck to support the NOA in creating the awareness.
At the event were Station Officer, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mushin, Mr Arabo Bello Fufort; Divisional Officer, Nigeria Security Defence Corps (NSDC), Mrs Amusa Mosurat; Chief Imam, Mushin, Alhaji Sulaimon Labijo; Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) representative, Re. Olabisi Okunade; Ijaloja-General, Mushin, Alhaja Taibat Borokin; Chairman, CDC, Odi/Ojuwoye, Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Otunba Adebayto Adekunle, among others.
