How can Nigeria have Credible Elections.

So much has been said,So much is going on ,all bothering around how we will have sound leaders which of course are usually products of sound elections.
How can Nigeria have Credible Elections.

Our politicians need proper re- education of the basic principles of democracy.

Credible elections only come through credible and transparent systems,One of which presently is Automated voters registration and election.

Political sponsorship/ godfatherism is the undoing of Nigerian Politics. Godfatherism in Nigeria politics means that a politician may have sold his or her independence to a financier or party power-broker in order to win an election; thereby trading his or her Leadership,He no longer get to choose credible people for office but the Godfathers choice,Most painful enough ,most of the godfathers are not after good but personal gains and evil and the ill-circle continues.

All hand must be on deck,from the Nigerians in diaspora to Nigerians in the caves.

We must vote and make sure our votes are counted,this may not solve the problem at once but it will be bring good solution to the lasting change we desire.

There will be credible election in Nigeria only if officeholders are not paid anything, but rather use their own resources to augment governmental services. That is what happens in most private associations. For instance, it was a tug of war before I was allowed to relinquish the position of Treasurer of my community's Landlord Association after having held it consecutively for about 10 years. The current Chairman has held the position for over 15 years now, and nobody has listened to his pleas for an election to take place. If positions in those associations were to carry some pecuniary incentives, one would see everybody gunning for them with cut-throat endeavours.

On a more serious note, we can only hope to have less controversial elections in the foreseeable future. Credible elections are hard to come by in an environment with:
- Too much power and money accruing to office holding
- Greedy and selfish leadership
- Low voter education and poor sense of belonging
- Winner-takes-all system
- Unemployment and poverty
- Naked use of power and the presence of widespread impunity
- Lack of accountability
...and so on.

I join others in welcoming Jega, but I do not hope for more than "less controversial elections" in 2011. Obasanjo knew what he was saying when he referred to Jesus Christ the other time. God bless Nigeria.