A coalition of Civil Society Organisations, candidates in the 2023 general elections, political parties’ chairmen, and ethnic youth leaders passed a vote of confidence on the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, for delivering the fairest general elections in the annals of the nation’s democratic rule in the nation’s capital.
The coalition, under the umbrella of the Civil Society Central Coordinating Council, also rejected the report of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU-EOM), saying it falls below the standard of any report by any credible agency on an election observation mission.
They also raised an alarm on plots by some politicians to compromise the Bimodal Voter Accreditation Machine (BVAS) machines for the upcoming Governorship elections in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states, respectively, and urged security forces to take judicial notice of the plots.
These observations were made at a one-day national roundtable on the comprehensive review of the 2023 general elections held on Monday in Abuja.
Members of the coalition present at the roundtable meeting included; National Chairman, Action Alliance, Barr Kenneth Udeze, National Chairman, Action Peoples Party (APP), Barr Uchenna Nnadi, Executive Director, Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA), Faith Nwadishi, national chairman, National Rescue Movement (NRM), Chief Isaac Udeh, National Chairman, Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), Dan Nwanyanwu, National Chairman, Accord, Alhaji Lawal Nalado.
Others are Chairman, Partners for Electoral Reforms, Ezenwa Nwagwu, Presidential Candidate of APP, Hon. Charles Nnadi, Presidential candidate of NRM, Rev. Johnson Osakwe, vice presidential candidate of Boot party, Usman Mustapha Turaki, and representatives of Arewa Consultative Youth Movement, Ohaneze Youth Movement, and South-South Youth Council of Nigeria.
They noted that INEC under Yakubu performed credibly well after analyzing the pre-election, election day, and post-election outcomes of the 2023 polls.
According to them, it was unfair to attack the INEC chairman, who they said put everything on the line to “push through the technological innovations and reforms, cleaned up the voter register, prosecuted and disciplined staff as high as a State Resident Electoral Commissioner, and insisted that BVAS must be used for the election.
“The National Roundtable reviewed the pre-election processes by the political parties and agreed that political parties and political actors were responsible for a vast majority of the tension and concerns about the election, and INEC conducted itself creditably in this area.
“The National Roundtable reviewed the preparations and pre-election logistics deployment by INEC and agreed that the Commission was punctual in meeting up and completing all its activity checklists on schedule, including logistics deployment of non-sensitive and sensitive materials.
According to them “We also reviewed the modus of collation and announcement of results and decried the wrongful use of armed security personnel to compromise the electoral process at the collation centres and called for the introduction of the use of technology in this aspect of the process.
“We reviewed the post-election application for Certified True Copies of relevant election documents by both Petitioners and Respondents at the various Election Tribunals and commended INEC for making available the copies of the huge volumes required, including digital reports of the BVAS and IREV.
These, the Roundtable admits, reinforce the credibility of the election and the neutrality of the Commission.
“We reviewed the outcome of the 2023 general election and adopted the fact that this was the most politically diverse National Assembly in the history of our democracy, with no fewer than six political parties having representatives in the National Assembly.
“The roundtable observed that in the House of Representatives, members from minority parties are in the majority in the House, showing a truly representative House as voted by the people.
The Roundtable agrees that this speaks directly to the integrity and credibility of the election and commended the commission for performing well in this regard.
“The National Roundtable criticizes the election observation report of the European Union, which falls below the standard of any report by any credible agency on an election observation mission.
The Roundtable wondered how the EU could rely on the report of a few observers deployed in a handful of urban centres to be representative of the almost 180,000 Polling Units in the country.
“The National Roundtable, therefore, frowns at the call for the removal of the INEC Chairman from office and unanimously rejects the call as being self-serving, myopic, and a setback to gains made in the electoral process.
“We believe that for INEC to be truly independent, the appointment and removal of the leadership of the Commission should not be at the whims and caprices of the executive and that until the approval of the National Assembly is sought and obtained, the Chairman of INEC cannot be removed.
“The National Roundtable, having analyzed the pre-election, Election Day, and post-election outcomes of the elections, and without prejudice to the ongoing petitions at the tribunals, gives INEC a pass mark and unanimously passes a vote of confidence on the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, for his outstanding conduct of the 2023 general election and condemns in the strongest of terms the attacks on his personality and the calls for his removal from office.”
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Full text: See Obi’s written address to Tinubu
Labour Party legal team, led by Livy Uzoukwu (SAN), on Thursday, filed their final written address in response to…
46-year-old Nigerian ‘mysteriously’ dies in ScotlandÂ
Security and health experts in Glasgow, Scotland are battling to unravel the mystery surrounding the sudden death of…
Nigerian billionaire businessman Tony Elumelu invited Wizkid as he organises a ‘sip and paint’ to celebrate his…
Subsidy: 10 ways to reduce fuel consumption
Amidst the early days of President Bola Tinubu’s administration in Nigeria, the nation has been grappling with a staggering increase in…
Messi scores on debut as Inter Miami wins league cup matchÂ
Argentine Superstar Lionel Messi scored on his debut for Major League Soccer side Inter Miami as they secured a victory over…
RECENTLY, Nigeria has been facing an unprecedented scourge of diphtheria, and so soon after the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been found in…
and then