By Josephine Oguntoyinbo
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As the 2019 general elections draw near, politicians have been charged to give peace a chance.
The Methodist Bishop of Owo Diocese, Rt. Reverend Solomon Adegbite gave the charge while speaking with The Hope in Owo on Tuesday.
The Bishop called on the political class not see the 2019 elections as a do-or-die affairs.
He urged stakeholders in the elections to allow votes of people to count and see their political aspirations as a call to service.
“Vote of the people must count, nobody should impose themselves, afterall, it is a call to service. If people say they do not want you to serve them, that should not be a problem as you can use your time and energy for other things and still contribute your quota to the development of the society.
Vote buying should stop, let the votes count, But with what we are seeing, nearly all the political parties are hopeful of winning the election, whereas, all of them cannot win at the same time. Some will emerged while some must accept defeat.
“What we need in Nigeria is good governance, we are in a civilized society, whether you are a Muslim or Christian the most important thing is for people to enjoy good governance. Leaders must listen to advice, we have people in the society who can contribute to the development of the nation.
“The leaders are not perfect, people must contribute to ensure good governance. Election must not lead to pandemonium. Campaign must be based on issues and what they want to offer, not to attack the opponents,” he stressed.
The cleric, who emphasised that rigging must be disallowed, posited that the bedrock of democracy has already been destroyed wherever there is rigging.
He emphasised that election must be conducted in a condusive environment devoid of rancour, while people must go beyond local and indecent politics.
“I urge christians to partake in politics, because when wrong people are ruling, you will get wrong results, If you know you have the solutions to Nigeria’s problems, you can participate. It is not about money, but what you can offer, if people know that you are competent, they will vote for you”, he stated.
Adegbite charged voters not to collect money from politicians during the 2019 elections but vote for those who can make impact.”Vote for the right people, vote base on your conscience”.
He enjoined the youths not to be allowed to be used as political thugs as this will truncate their future.
“If anybody wants to use you as political thug, ask him where his children are, let him buy cutlasses and guns for his children, I want our youths to know that they may die in the process of this ungodly act, while people they are fighting for will move on”.
He however, assured that religious leaders will continue to pray for peace to reign in the nation.
