The morality of Holding elections in Nigeria on Sundays
NaijaRock
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Posted by Felix Okoli on Sunday March 29, 2015 at 15:14:7:
For the average Nigerian Christian, a Sunday is the day of the Lord and it's a day meant to be fully used to worship God in Spirit and Truth. The Nigerian government and constitution seem to understand this and that's why it's considered a work free day but the way through which some government agencies appear to be disrespecting it, it goes to show that Christianity is being gradually disregarded in the country.Christianity is one of the major religions in Nigeria and it is reported that there are over 80 million Christians in the country. Of all the days of the week, Sunday is the most holy day to Christians and it's for this reason that Sunday is one of the work free days recognized by the government so that Christians may have time to worship God without any distractions such as going to work.What bothers me is the way through which INEC has been fond of extending or holding elections on Sundays since it's a day that is meant to be dedicated totally to God by Christians. Given the time it takes to vote at elections conducted by INEC, it's probably not going to be possible for a Christian to go to church and at the same time to vote for the elections. Requiring a Nigerian Christian to avoid going to Church just to vote is like asking a Muslim not to go to the Mosque to pray on Friday. If a Nigerian Christian were to avoid voting at the elections just to go to church to fulfill what he/she considers as the most important thing, it may also deny him of his/her right as a Nigerian citizen. Is INEC and the Nigerian government trying to say that Christians no longer have the freedom to worship on Sundays? Is the election commission trying to ensure that many Christians don't turn out to vote at the elections?I'm not sure what the real reasons are but with the way one would see it rationally, it appears that the reason why INEC is holding elections on Sundays makes it seem as if Christians no longer matter in the politics of Nigeria and it' something that is being done so that Muslims may continue to have political advantage over Christians in a country that is almost evenly divided by 2 religions.During the 2015 Presidential elections, the 2 main candidates were from the 2 religious divides with one being a Muslim and the second being a Christian. The INEC Chairman was also a Christian and because elections were not completed on Saturday, it was carried over to Sunday. This should not have been the proper thing since Sunday was not conducive for Christians to come out and vote. Many Christians value their religion over politics and extending elections over to Sunday would be denying them of their rights to vote at the election.Only Nigerian Muslims are more likely to come out on Sundays to vote unlike Christians who hold Sunday as their most holy day. Why were the elections not extended till Monday rather than Sunday given that even the Federal government recognizes Sunday as a holy day for Christians?I believe that if Nigerian Christians were asked to vote for a referendum on whether they would be willing to come out and vote on a Sunday or not, I believe many of them would actually vote against it so that it doesn't get mixed up with a day they were meant to worship God.Many Nigerian Christians really feel uncomfortable voting during a Sunday or any other special day in Christianity like Christmas, Easter and so on. I just think when INEC is making decisions concerning holding elections, they should not only consider the feelings or convenience of Muslims but they should consider that of Christians alone.Who knows? If the INEC Chairman decides to hold elections on Sundays just because he is a Muslim, then it would be justified for a Christian INEC chairman to also decide to hold elections on Fridays or any other special day for Muslims? I'm sure a lot of Muslims would protest against it but Nigerian Christians may appear to be more forgiving even though they don't approve of it.Holding elections on Sundays is not favourable for the average Nigerian Christian and It would be better it it were extended to other days like a Monday because only few Christians would be willing to come out to vote on that holy day.
For the average Nigerian Christian, a Sunday is the day of the Lord and it's a day meant to be fully used to worship God in Spirit and Truth. The Nigerian government and constitution seem to understand this and that's why it's considered a work free day but the way through which some government agencies appear to be disrespecting it, it goes to show that Christianity is being gradually disregarded in the country.Christianity is one of the major religions in Nigeria and it is reported that there are over 80 million Christians in the country. Of all the days of the week, Sunday is the most holy day to Christians and it's for this reason that Sunday is one of the work free days recognized by the government so that Christians may have time to worship God without any distractions such as going to work.What bothers me is the way through which INEC has been fond of extending or holding elections on Sundays since it's a day that is meant to be dedicated totally to God by Christians. Given the time it takes to vote at elections conducted by INEC, it's probably not going to be possible for a Christian to go to church and at the same time to vote for the elections. Requiring a Nigerian Christian to avoid going to Church just to vote is like asking a Muslim not to go to the Mosque to pray on Friday. If a Nigerian Christian were to avoid voting at the elections just to go to church to fulfill what he/she considers as the most important thing, it may also deny him of his/her right as a Nigerian citizen. Is INEC and the Nigerian government trying to say that Christians no longer have the freedom to worship on Sundays? Is the election commission trying to ensure that many Christians don't turn out to vote at the elections?I'm not sure what the real reasons are but with the way one would see it rationally, it appears that the reason why INEC is holding elections on Sundays makes it seem as if Christians no longer matter in the politics of Nigeria and it' something that is being done so that Muslims may continue to have political advantage over Christians in a country that is almost evenly divided by 2 religions.During the 2015 Presidential elections, the 2 main candidates were from the 2 religious divides with one being a Muslim and the second being a Christian. The INEC Chairman was also a Christian and because elections were not completed on Saturday, it was carried over to Sunday. This should not have been the proper thing since Sunday was not conducive for Christians to come out and vote. Many Christians value their religion over politics and extending elections over to Sunday would be denying them of their rights to vote at the election.Only Nigerian Muslims are more likely to come out on Sundays to vote unlike Christians who hold Sunday as their most holy day. Why were the elections not extended till Monday rather than Sunday given that even the Federal government recognizes Sunday as a holy day for Christians?I believe that if Nigerian Christians were asked to vote for a referendum on whether they would be willing to come out and vote on a Sunday or not, I believe many of them would actually vote against it so that it doesn't get mixed up with a day they were meant to worship God.Many Nigerian Christians really feel uncomfortable voting during a Sunday or any other special day in Christianity like Christmas, Easter and so on. I just think when INEC is making decisions concerning holding elections, they should not only consider the feelings or convenience of Muslims but they should consider that of Christians alone.Who knows? If the INEC Chairman decides to hold elections on Sundays just because he is a Muslim, then it would be justified for a Christian INEC chairman to also decide to hold elections on Fridays or any other special day for Muslims? I'm sure a lot of Muslims would protest against it but Nigerian Christians may appear to be more forgiving even though they don't approve of it.Holding elections on Sundays is not favourable for the average Nigerian Christian and It would be better it it were extended to other days like a Monday because only few Christians would be willing to come out to vote on that holy day.