By Abdulrauf Aliyu
As the old African proverb goes, “A man who hides behind a mask of deceit eventually trips over his own lies.” This rings painfully true for the local government elections that were supposed to take place today in Kaduna State. What unfolded was nothing short of a mockery of democracy—a fraudulent spectacle that raises serious questions about the integrity of both the electoral process and those tasked with its oversight. Instead of being a genuine attempt to allow citizens to exercise their right to choose their leaders, the election was marred by widespread complaints, incompetence, and blatant disregard for due process. The joke was on the people.
Many citizens, eager to perform their civic duties, waited at polling stations for hours, only to be greeted by an absence of election officials and materials. In some wards, these essentials didn’t arrive until late in the afternoon, while in others, they never arrived at all. I myself waited for over three hours before leaving in frustration at 2:24 pm, having seen no signs of any election activity. What was initially blamed on “logistical failures” soon revealed itself to be something more sinister—a deliberate manipulation of the process.
Reports from across Kaduna were troubling: some wards had no elections at all due to missing officials, while in other places, ballots arrived so late that the entire voting process was reduced to a hurried affair lasting barely four hours. There was even talk of opposition parties insisting on the presence of result recording materials before voting could begin—a completely reasonable request. Yet, this insistence was treated as an inconvenience, a hindrance to those who had already planned to undermine the process from the start.
Perhaps the most farcical aspect of the entire ordeal was that in some areas where elections allegedly took place, results were announced before ballots had even been fully counted. The so-called chairman of the Kaduna State Independent Electoral Commission (KADSIECOM) unashamedly declared winners while votes were still being tallied. The level of impunity and disdain for the democratic process is not only laughable but deeply troubling.
This brings me to the Attorney General’s recent judicial exercise to grant local governments autonomy over their finances. It is a pointless endeavor. The idea that autonomy in finances alone could solve the rot within local governments is naive at best. The real problem, as today’s elections clearly illustrate, lies not in weak institutions but in the people who run them. No matter how much autonomy or independence is granted, as long as the people in charge are corrupt, unethical, and unaccountable, nothing will change.
Whenever people blame “weak institutions” for Nigeria’s failed development trajectory, I remind them that institutions are created by people. It is people who design them, people who run them, and people who corrupt them. Nigeria’s problem is not just about institutional failure; it is a failure of values, of ethics, and of a basic sense of responsibility. The individuals tasked with safeguarding our democracy have chosen to betray it for their own selfish gain.
In Kaduna, today’s election was just another example of how the culture of instant gratification has permeated every layer of governance. The chairperson of KADSIECOM, rather than resigning in shame for presiding over this electoral fraud, will likely continue to occupy her office as if nothing has happened. This is how low our standards have fallen. Instead of being held accountable, she remains in her position precisely because she has delivered what those in power wanted: a fraudulent election that will see their preferred candidates declared winners.
What is even more galling is that the so-called winners of today’s sham will soon take office, parading themselves as “elected officials” despite the fact that their positions were secured through a rigged process. How can anyone expect them to govern legitimately when their very mandate is tainted? These individuals do not deserve the respect or trust of the people they claim to represent. They are nothing more than frauds occupying positions of authority, and they will remain illegitimate in the eyes of anyone who values democracy and justice.
The whole system stinks of irresponsibility—both from the leaders who orchestrated this farce and the citizens who turn a blind eye to it. Even the beneficiaries of today’s fraud will go about their duties, claiming that they have a legitimate mandate. This is the height of hypocrisy, and it is why I will never recognize them as true leaders. They have no business being in office, and until their term expires, they will remain frauds in my eyes, serving a fraudulent term.
Now, imagine if Nigeria were to introduce decentralized policing, where each state had its own police force. The chaos would be unimaginable. If we can’t even trust local electoral bodies to conduct fair elections, how can we trust local governments to oversee their own law enforcement? The mess would be catastrophic.
To close with the words of Chinua Achebe: “A man who brings home ant-infested firewood should not be surprised when lizards pay him a visit.” The people of Kaduna deserve better than this fraudulent charade of an election. It is high time that those who perpetuate such acts of deceit and dishonor are held accountable for their actions. Only then can we begin to rebuild trust in our democratic processes.
Abdulrauf aliyu, an economist and public policy analyst can be reached on aliyuabdulrauf@gmail.com