ABUJA- The National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) has called for a dialogue between political parties and deliberate actions to address challenges encountered during the 2023 general elections.
The Director-General of the institute, Prof. Ayo Omotayo, stated this at a conference on 2023 Election with the theme “Political Parties, 2023 Elections and the Future of Democracy in Nigeria,’’ on Tuesday in Abuja.
The conference was organised by Political Parties Leadership and Policy Development Centre of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS-PPLPDC), Kuru, Plateau.
Omotayo, represented by the Director of Research, NIPSS, Prof. Dung Sha, listed some of the challenges to include issues related technology, the place of indigene and non-indigene during election.
He said that the NIPSS-PPLPDC strongly believed that political parties were the foundation of democratic development and also indispensable for the success of democratic governance.
“Political parties are key to ensuring national unity and stability of the political process in any democratic nation.
“NIPSS-PPLPDC consequently acknowledged that trust and cooperation among political parties in Nigeria is imperative to reforms the party system and democratic consolidation in Nigeria.
“The 2023 Elections was probably the most keenly contested and highly divisive election since the advent of democracy in 1999.
“The election brought to fore a lot of issues that need to be addressed to strengthen our democracy.
“One of the fundamental issues is the infusion of technology in our voting process, the place of indigene and non-indigene during elections and a host of other issues,’’ Omotayo said.
The D-G said that if these issues were not addressed, Nigeria democracy would be endangered and the country’s unity threatened.
“Nonetheless, effective and peaceful dialogue between political parties and the political actors are imperative to galvanize the populace towards national development.
“There is a need to pacify all aggrieved actors, interrogate the issues raised and proffer solutions to forestall future occurrence,’’ Omotayo said.
He said that the aim of the conference was to x-ray the 2023 elections by bringing together all stakeholders involved to discuss the challenges, issues and proffer solutions to improve the conduct of future elections in Nigeria.
Omotayo said that inter and intra party collaboration was central to political parties’ role in creating conditions that support both democratic consolidation and national stability.
He said that the NIPSS-PPLPDC as a think-thank for the nation considered the 2023 general election as important because it set the tone for development of the country going forward.
“We are aware there are positive and negative sides of the election.
“We need to have a platform that will take stock of the development that happened during the election for us to chat a way forward,’’ Omotayo said.
The Executive Director, YIAGA Africa, Mr Samson Itodo, said that one lesson from the 2023 general election was the need for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be truly independent. (NAN)