THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has begun to review a draft of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill that will include stringent punishments for election violators. Emeka Nzeh writes.
Retreat on review of electoral legal framework
Declaring the open the retreat on the Review of the Electoral Legal Framework holding in Lagos, Monday, the INEC chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, said such guidelines must be anchored on the increasing citizens’ confidence which enhances the transparency and credibility of the electoral process.
He also said the guidelines must entrench internal democracy within political parties and ensure inclusivity in the electoral process for marginalised segments of society such as women, youths and persons with living with disability.
Other guidelines, according to the INEC chairman, are to reduce the cost of elections; curbing the incidence of violence and sundry malpractices in the electoral process; ensuring that violators of electoral laws are effectively sanctioned; deepening the deployment of technology in elections; and increasing the autonomy and independence (both administrative and financial) of the electoral commission.
Yakubu stated that “the commission’s input is not limited to the review proposed by the National Assembly,” stressing that “As election managers, we conduct elections.
He also said, “We also monitor pre-election activities such as party primaries and handle post-election processes, including the outcome of litigations.
He, therefore, urged participants at the retreat 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 expressed the delight that members of the Senate Committee on INEC and House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters would join the retreat on Thursday and Friday for in-depth review of both their proposal and the input of the commission.
He stated that the ongoing retreat is the first time that the National Assembly and INEC would come together on electoral reform hoping that it would afford them opportunity to serve Nigerians better.
He said the purpose of the retreat which is to finalise the Commission’s comprehensive proposal to the National Assembly for amendment to the electoral legal framework.
2019 election draft bill
Further, he said that the commission had in late 2019 received the draft of the Bill from the Senate Committee on INEC which had earlier been presented to the executive for assent before the 2019 general elections.
“In turn, the commission shared the draft Bill internally with the National Commissioners, the Directors, the Resident Electoral Commissioners (REC) and senior officials in the 36 states and the FCT.
“Listening to Nigerians, it is clear that a review of the Electoral Act and our electoral legal framework in general, must be anchored on curbing incidents of violence and sundry malpractices in the electoral process. It is also to ensure that violators of electoral laws are effectively sanctioned.
“It must deepen the deployment of technology in elections. It will also ensure inclusivity in the electoral process for marginalised segments of the society such as women, youths and persons living with disabilities.”
On the issue of security during elections, Yakubu said that the Amendment Bill had made an extensive provision for security of lives and property during elections.
Security during elections
“On the issue of security during elections, I think there is an amendment in 2015, and 2015 amendment provides broadly for the provision of security.
“Particularly important for our election, for as long as violators of our electoral laws are not penalized we will continue to have issues with our elections.
“Take South Africa for instance, electoral violators are arrested and instantly prosecuted, in our case, committee after committee has recommended for the enactment of a law to set up the commission of the electoral offense.
“The Uwais electoral reform committee recommended it, stakeholders recommended it.
Punishment for election violators
“We hope this time around before we go into a major election, we will have the electoral offense commission and the tribunal, to which all violators of our electoral laws would be subjected.”
“It also would ensure that violators of electoral laws would face stiff penalties. As long as violators of electoral laws are not penalised, we will continue to have issues with our elections.
“As part of the reforms of the key components of the Electoral Act, we will like to see the effective sanctions of those who violate electoral laws of this country.
“Any country that does not penalise offenders is doomed and we must find a way of penalising electoral offenders so that impunity can be at best reduced or even eliminated completely,” Yakubu said.
Avoid unnecessary litigation
Some Nigerians are strongly of the view that the Electoral Act amendment bill needs to be given priority in order to avoid the problems associated with post-election litigation. It would save Nigeria time and resources if the government would be able to trash this out before the 2023 elections.
This is to save Nigeria’s democracy and its electoral system. The various litigation after the 2019 elections are needles, when laws that guarantee transparency of the electoral system and process are in place.
Why retreat
The INEC Director of Legal Services, Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, also said that the retreat would serve as the final stage in the commission’s efforts to harvest proposals for amendments to the Electoral Act 2010.
“The objective of the retreat is to provoke discussions to strengthen the processes and procedures for voter registration, the use of technology in elections, registration and regulation of political parties and election dispute adjudication.
“The expectations of this retreat are the harmonisation of all the proposals for amendment to the Electoral Act 2010 for presentation to the National Assembly,” she said.
In his address of welcome; the REC, INEC Lagos State, Mr Sam Olumekun, said that Lagos State had 6.5million registered voters, 8,462 polling units and 4,961 voting points during the last general elections.
“In the last general elections, we recorded 17 court cases made up of two governorship petitions, two senatorial cases, 11 House of Representatives and 2 House of Assembly cases. There is the need to have special courts for electoral offences.
“The establishment of special electoral offences courts with defined time frame for prosecution will ensure speedy administration of justice in Lagos. We had a matter that lasted for eight years,” he said.
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The objective of the retreat is to provoke discussions to strengthen the processes and procedures for voter registration, the use of technology in elections, registration and regulation of political parties and election dispute adjudication.
