The Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, has urged political leaders to deliver measurable improvements in the lives of Nigerians, saying citizens deserve to see tangible benefits from the votes they cast during elections.
Kukah spoke to Channels Television on Tuesday in Abuja ahead of the signing of the National Peace Accord for the 2027 general elections.
The bishop stressed that Nigerians should not simply hand over their votes to politicians without demanding accountability and improved living conditions.
“Ordinary Nigerians need to see a qualitative and measurable improvement in the quality of their lives. We are not just handing you our votes and then you take the votes and run with them,” he said.
Kukah also called for greater citizen participation in the electoral process, arguing that the responsibility for credible elections should not rest solely with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“I think that critical to all of this is the need to sensitise ordinary citizens. I think we often underrate the capacity of the ordinary citizen,” he said.
According to him, while INEC has the statutory responsibility of conducting elections, citizens must understand the electoral process, know their rights and responsibilities, and play an active role in ensuring credible polls.
The cleric expressed optimism that increased use of technology could help strengthen Nigeria’s electoral system and reduce opportunities for manipulation.
“I see a lot of hope and a lot of future in terms of technology because the truth of the matter is that manipulation from the Latin word manus, that is hand, anything that you are holding with your hand is subject to manipulation. And once all of this goes to science and technology, even the criminal becomes helpless,” he said.
Kukah also urged politicians to view public office as an avenue to improve citizens’ lives rather than pursue personal interests.
“I keep telling our politicians, ‘Politics is a noble game.’ You can create a bit of nobility around it, but we didn’t vote for you to be happy on our behalf,” he said.
He said public confidence in democracy would increase when Nigerians could clearly see improvements in their living conditions.
“People’s confidence will increase as long as they can see a mirror image of the fact that their lives are changing,” he said.
Kukah noted that Nigeria’s continued democratic journey more than two decades after the return to civilian rule demonstrated Nigerians’ commitment to democracy.
“I think the very fact that we are having all these elections, 27 years later, and we are still here is a clear testimony that Nigerians, ordinary people, love democracy. But the challenge for the ruling class is to reward them, and you reward them by doing good and making them trust the system,” he said.
The National Peace Committee, led by former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar, facilitated the signing of the first National Peace Accord for the 2027 elections in Abuja on Tuesday.
The accord commits political parties and their candidates to peaceful conduct and issue-based campaigns before, during and after the elections.
Established ahead of the 2015 general elections, the National Peace Committee seeks to promote peaceful elections, mediate political disputes and encourage political actors to accept electoral outcomes.
The 2015 accord, signed by then-presidential candidates Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, preceded Nigeria’s first democratic transfer of power from an incumbent ruling party to an opposition party since the return to democracy in 1999.
The initiative has subsequently been extended to several off-cycle governorship elections across the country.
