As Nigerians head to the poll on Saturday February 16, 2019, the Great Benin King, Oba Ewuare II, has challenged the nation’s electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prove its independence by displaying high level of fairness, credibility and efficiency in the conduct of the elections.
The Benin Monarch threw the challenge on Wednesday, in a press statement, signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Desmond Agbama, ahead of the election.
Oba Ewuare again admonished politicians and electorates to eschew violence and conduct themselves in a manner that will not truncate the nation’s democratic process.
While warning the politicians against vote buying, the Oba of Benin also cautioned the electorates against selling their votes, and charged the youths to refrain from being used as political thugs to disrupt the electoral process.
The Omo N’Oba charged the various security agencies to maintain high level of neutrality and should not harass or intimidate voters, but provide adequate security at polling centers.
The Oba of Benin advised eligible voters to come out en mass to vote for the candidate of their choice without fear of intimidation or molestation.
