One thing is clear; the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)’s campaign, leading up to the upcoming general elections, has been one of the most combative and violence laden Nigeria has seen since the return to democracy in 1999.

From rival factions fighting at rallies to party chieftains and candidates threatening Nigerians, the opposition and even international observers, the campaign has become one which peace-loving Nigerians cannot wait to see an end of.

This dread for the APC’s campaign took a frightful turn on Monday when the incumbent President General Muhammadu Buhari warned those planning to disrupt elections or snatch ballot boxes that they would pay with their lives; "I'm going to warn anybody who thinks he has enough influence in his locality to lead a body of thugs to snatch ballot boxes or disturb the voting system, will do so at the expense of his own life." he said, speaking at the televised APC Caucus Meeting in Abuja, where he also stated that "I really gave the military and police orders to be ruthless."

Many Nigerians have expressed shock and apprehension at the statement by the President, noting that with how heated the Nigerian polity is at the moment, statements such as were uttered by the President, had the potential of emboldening trigger-happy security agents to take the law into their hands and could lead to the killing of innocent Nigerians who would be taking part in the rescheduled February 23rd polls.

Others have also drawn the attention of Nigerians to the widespread intimidation of voters by thugs and security agents loyal to the ruling APC in the Osun State gubernatorial rerun elections last year, and how this “shoot at sight” order could lead to a reenactment of that violent episode that was widely condemned by Nigerian civil society groups as well as the United States, United Kingdom and European Union missions in Nigeria. 

Section 128 of the Electoral Act state that “any person who at an election acts or incites others to act in a disorderly manner commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a maximum fine of N500,000.00 or imprisonment for a term of 12 months or both” and specifically states that anyone who destroys or snatches election material is liable to imprisonment for 24 months. Nowhere is capital punishment prescribed as a penalty for any electoral offence in Nigeria. 

With the elections having been postponed by a week, to allow the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) to sort out logistics and other issues it claimed made them not go ahead with the elections as scheduled for February 16th, one would expect that the President would act like a statesman who is committed to ensuring the process is free, fair, credible and devoid of rancour.

Rather, he has continued the vindictive and combative chatter being spread by members of his party, which has bordered on outright threats to election observers and the opposition, making it seem like the election is one the APC is executing as though a war, to ensure they hold onto power at all costs.

Earlier in the month, an ally of General Buhari’s, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, who is also the APC gubernatorial candidate in Kaduna State, had said in a warning suspected to be targeted at foreign election observers, that they would go back to their countries in body bags if they interfere in the polls.

In an interview which was televised on the state-owned National Television Authority (NTA), Mallam El-Rufai was heard saying “Those that are calling for anyone to come and intervene in Nigeria, we are waiting for the person that would come and intervene, they would go back in body bags”.

General Muhammadu Buhari’s penchant for incendiary words and brute force might not come as a surprise to those who remember how he truncated Nigeria’s democracy in a 1983 military coup and how his statements after losing the 2011 elections led to the killing of 10 National Youth Service Corps members as well as that of about 800 others in the post-election violence in Northern Nigeria.

But for many young Nigerians, his recent militarized statement might de-motivate them from casting votes for their preferred candidates on Saturday, leading to lower voter turnout; which many social commentators say would work perfectly in the interest of the APC.

All in all, the consensus of outright condemnation of the President’s order to security agencies by many Nigerians on hearing the news is one that should be emulated by all. It is clear that the combative stance of General Buhari and the APC are the last acts of desperation by a government that is aware that it has lost the support of the governed and the only request Nigerians are making to them is that they do not burn the country down on their way out. 

Edward Israel-Ayide is on Twitter @wildeyeq  

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Editor's note: The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Pulse Nigeria.