Credible Election Enhances Prosperity, Says Rep. Ben Kalu

Member representing Bende Federal Constituency Abia state, Rep. Benjamin Kalu has said credibility in electoral process brings about the prosperity of the people and nation.

According to Rep. Kalu who is the Chairman House of Representatives committee on Information and Public Affairs, credible election raises the confidence of the people who by themselves selected their own leadership as well as boosts their economic prosperity with robust policies such individuals at the helm of affairs are expected to bring to bear.

Speaking on the newly signed Electoral Act Amendment Bill, the House of Representatives member in a chat with newsmen recently said when a credible leader in elected, he will have capacity to raise the confidence of other members of comity of nation to come to Nigeria and invest.

He added that good leadership stabilizes the environment politically in such a way that it would be devoid of rancour to attract investors to stimulate the economy for overall benefit of the people.

He said, “Like I said when I started, Nigeria does not exist in isolation of other members of the comity of nations. So those members of what has become a global community have one or two things they want to do with Nigeria and one of them is economic activities.

“So, a better leader will raise the confidence of country A, investor A, country B, country C to come into Nigeria to invest. A credible election that will stabilise the political space will give the confidence in the investors that if we invest there, there is noimminent war, there is no political crisis that is imminent and our investment is secured.

“Also, once good leadership emerge there will be a proper analysis of the needs of the people and one of these needs happens to be economic needs. If the economic needs of the people are properly analysed by a political leader that has emerged through instrumentality of the people according to the ethos of democracy, one thing is certain.

“The policies of such a leader with regards to the economy will be people oriented and when a policy is people oriented, when economic policy is done with the people in mind; putting the square pegs in the square holes, putting the round pegs in the round holes, it will drive the economic prosperity of such a nation.”

The Bill now an Act has been widely applauded for its capacity to entrench a credible electoral process devoid of undue manipulations by political actors.

Among its key components is the provision for electronic transmission of election results from polling units to the central sever which reduces human interference.