As the nation prepares for a fresh amendment of the Electoral Act 2010, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Monday, announced an eight-point agenda designed to curb multifaceted issues that tend to undermine the conduct of elections in the country.
The chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who unveiled the proposal in his opening address at a two-day retreat for top functionaries of the commission, said the proposal was aimed at strengthening the Electoral Act and reinvigorating public confidence in the system.
He said the retreat was important because the purpose was to finalise the INEC’s comprehensive proposal to the National Assembly for the amendment to the nation’s electoral legal framework.
Chief among the major issues under scrutiny is reducing the cost of elections; curb the incidence of violence and sundry malpractices in the electoral process and how to ensure that violators of electoral laws are effectively sanctioned.
The other key areas on focus include how to deepen the deployment of technology in elections and increase the autonomy and independence (both administrative and financial) of the INEC.
He equally listed the need to increase citizens’ confidence by enhancing the transparency and credibility of the electoral process, as well as entrenching internal democracy within political parties.
ALSO READ: LG election: We are done with primaries ― Ondo APC
The overall proposal also includes ensuring inclusivity in the electoral process for marginalised segments of society such as women, youths and persons with living with disabilities.
All these factors, according to Yakubu, will help the review of the Electoral Act in particular, and the nation’s electoral legal framework in general.
Noting that the commission’s input was not limited to the review proposed by the National Assembly, Yakubu said as election managers, the personnel of the INEC also monitors-election activities such as party primaries and handle post-election processes, including the outcome of litigation.
Therefore, he challenged them to “cast our nets wide by dissecting the electoral act in the light of experience and proposing wide-ranging amendments that will give the nation an electoral legal framework that can truly protect their choice and guarantee free, fair and credible elections.”
He disclosed that members of the Senate Committee on INEC and House of Representatives’ Committee on Electoral Matters would be at the retreat between Thursday and Friday for an in-depth review of their proposal and the INEC”s input.
“This is the first time that the National Assembly and the INEC are coming together on electoral reform. We look forward to this opportunity to serve Nigerians better.
He thanked the European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), for their untiring support to the electoral and democratic processes in Nigeria, as such support was critical to the ongoing retreat that has brought together not only INEC officials together but also, for the first time, members of the National Assembly and the Commission to discuss the review of the electoral legal framework outside the context of public hearing that always took place in Abuja.
He recalled that last year, the commission received from the Senate Committee on INEC, a modified version of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, which the National Assembly had presented to the executive for assent before the 2019 general election.
The revised Bill had amended several sections and subsections of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).
In presenting the draft Bill to the Commission, the Senate Committee specifically requested for the Commission’s input into areas that will strengthen the proposed legislation.
In turn, the Commission shared the draft Bill internally with the National Commissioners and Directors at the Headquarters as well as the Resident Electoral Commissioners and senior officials in the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for comments.
Yakubu said the comments have now been compiled into a draft document that the retreat would discuss and validate as the INEC’s position on the electoral legal framework.
According to him, the commission’s draft document has also taken the comments and suggestions by stakeholders into consideration, especially following the conclusion of the 2019 general election.
However, Yakubu said for an enduring review, the INEC looked at the electoral legal framework comprehensively, reviewed existing provisions with regard to elections in both the Constitution and the Electoral Act.
In his view, the procedure for constitutional alterations are handled separately, including a different procedure for harnessing citizens’ input.
He said that though the draft is ready, it required further internal review ahead of submission to the National Assembly.
and then