Chapter 2 political power and influence among the individuals within a polity. When political rights – the rights embodied in the idea of political equality – are exercised through the electoral choices that citizens make, they confer authority on governments and legitimize the institutions of democracy while ensuring, at the same time, their resilience, credibility and stability(Ninsin, 2006:187). As such, elections serve as a critical instrument for conflict prevention and peacebuilding through the facilitation of peaceful transfers of power from one political party to another. This helps to minimize the violence and general state of instability that often characterize undemocratic means of acquiring political power, such as military coups 5 d'état. For elections to produce peace, security and stability, however, the electoral choices of citizen need to be made in a free, fair, credible and violence-free atmosphere. If they are not manipulated, the electoral choices of citizens can also influence the character of public policy to reflect popular will as a preferred-policy bearing candidate or party gets elected into office. In this way, elections can serve as a platform for broadening participation(albeit indirectly) in the governance process while enabling the citizen to shape the forces that govern collective life. In short, elections serve as a critical mechanism through which citizens can advance their interests. Also, the decisions that citizens make in their choice of leadership are inextricably connected with the demand for accountability (Anebo, 2001). This is most visible when the electorate freely exercises its franchise to renew or terminate the mandate of an incumbent government at the polls 5 Over the years, therefore, Africa's regional organizations such as the AU and ECOWAS have adopted governance doctrines that sanction constitutional and orderly succession to power through the regular conduct of elections by member states. According to the ECOWAS Supplementary Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance (2001), for example,'[e]very accession to power must be made through free, fair and transparent elections'. Also see Article 1(b)&(c) respectively. 37