By Eniola Daniel
Chairman and Founder, Africa Leadership Group (ALG), Ituah Ighodalo, has called on eligible Nigerians with Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to vote wisely at the general elections.
He made the call at the official launch of ALG Leadership Assessment Tool in Lagos.
His words: “Nigeria cannot afford to get it wrong this time. We must intentionally and carefully select leaders fit for purpose at this time, who can lead us out of this national crisis.
“With two days to the general elections, acrimony among the major political parties continues to rise and frustration with the nation’s leaders is growing, as Nigerians experience severe shortages of fuel and the redesigned bank notes, resulting in public disturbances and riots throughout the country.”
Ighodalo urged the citizenry to maintain peace and use their voices and votes wisely, evaluating all political candidates against clear principles and qualities of strong leadership.
He appealed to Nigerians to vote for leaders that put the nation before self and has a vision Nigerians want to see.
The ALG chair continued: “Nigerians should vote a candidate that possesses moral, ethical principles and values, inspires and does not pressure people to follow; a candidate that possesses strong intellectual capacity and diverse knowledge, surrounds himself with people of truth and honesty, understands requirements of the office and understands politics and effectively and manages the complexity of bureaucracy. These qualities were also underscored by former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, during his guest appearance on January 12, 2023 at the ALG/Nigeria Leadership Series virtual town hall meetings.
“Nigeria needs a leader with character, competence, compassion, love, one who has the common good of the people at heart, the fear of God and is dedicated to prayer.”
Nigeria is at risk of becoming a failed state due to decades of worsening leadership, poor governance, and endemic corruption. The already fragile fault lines borne from ethno-religious conflicts have escalated. The polity has worsened with banditry, kidnapping and terrorism, further contributing to national insecurity. The time to act is now.
“ALG is committed to ensuring that your lawful votes count. We will collaborate with other credible organisations and volunteers to ensure the integrity of free and fair elections by observing polling stations to verify that lawfully registered voters can vote in an environment that is fair and free from coercion, intimidation, or violence and that the results announced reflect the votes counted. ALG will note and report any election irregularities in accordance with Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) guidelines.
ALG also commiserated with families affected in the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria that resulted in over 47,000 deaths.
Source: The Guardian
