March 30, 2022
Lagos, Nigeria
‘‘We must begin to imbibe a culture by which those who aspire to lead our people are subjected to a rigorous process of public debates that will assess their suitability on objective criteria, rather than the religion they practice or where they come from.’’
– Olusegun Adeniyi
(Chairman, ThisDay Editorial Board)
12 years ago, an email that led to a protest would begin EiE’s journey to ignite active citizenship in Nigeria. A loose network of young Nigerians would say ‘Enough is Enough’ and walk the talk by protesting at both the National Assembly and to then-Governor Babatunde Fashola’s office in Lagos, asking if President Yar’adua was dead or alive in Saudi Arabia, demanding that fuel queues and the killings in Jos be stopped.
12 years later, while Nigeria still battles with similar issues, EiE Nigeria has gone on to pioneer several campaigns including R|S|V|P, Nigeria’s longest-running get-out-the-vote campaign, which was adapted from the popular ‘Rice and Stew Very Plenty’ to Register | Select | Vote not Fight | Protect.
EiE’s incredible journey with debates as the core component of the organisation’s work in educating voters to select credible candidates – the ’S’ in RSVP would begin with the 2011 What About Us? Presidential Debate, Nigeria’s first youth-focused debate and extend in 2019 to The People’s Debate {presidential debate}, the first TV program broadcasted as a live radio simulcast in five languages – English, Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo & Pidgin.
12 years and 25 debates later, EiE has the record of hosting / co-hosting the most debates of any CSO in Nigeria. To commemorate its 12th anniversary, EiE will host a symposium ‘On Debates and Democracy’ on Tuesday, April 5, 2022 at 10am at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.
The symposium will feature a keynote address by Janet Brown, the Executive Director of the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), the body that hosts all presidential debates in the US; a media panel with four debate moderators that we’ve worked with over the last decade – Maupe Ogun-Yusuf, Ngozi Alaegbu, Reuben Abati, and Seun Okinbaloye – in conversation with Segun Adeniyi; and a debate panel with Abdulfatai Buhari (invited), the Oyo North Senator who proposed a bill to make debates mandatory; Babatunde Fashola, former Lagos State governor; Mahmood Yakubu, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman; Mercy Tosin Ayodele, 2018 Osun governorship election candidate and ‘Yemi Adamolekun, Executive Director, Enough is Enough Nigeria.
Speaking on EiE’s history with debates, the Executive Director, ‘Yemi Adamolekun said, “Debates are an integral part of a democratic system – either as part of a political campaign or engagements between citizens who have different opinions. In the political context, debates provide a platform where citizens can listen to the candidates, ask questions, and make informed choices on who they will elect to govern them. It shapes campaigns and prepares serious candidates for governance. EiE believes in the intrinsic value of debates as a mechanism to deepen democratic ideas and we are committed to hosting/co-hosting as many as we can to further that objective.”
As debates increasingly become a benchmark of a healthy democracy, EiE remains committed to hosting/co-hosting more debates that are accessible via multiple languages and channels.
Save the date, April 5th, register on Bit.ly/EiEOnDebates, and join us in-person or online as we have a conversation to explore how political debates contribute to democracy via citizens’ engagement; the necessity of a legal requirement; the role of the media and the role of political parties.
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Enough is Enough Nigeria (www.eie.ng) is a network of individuals and organisations committed to instituting a culture of good governance and public accountability in Nigeria through active citizenship. EiE’s #RSVP – Register | Select | Vote | Protect is Nigeria’s longest running get-out-the vote campaign. EiE was an integral part of the #OccupyNigeria movement in 2012 and continues to drive the #OpenNASS and #OfficeOftheCitizen campaigns.
