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Nigeria: Electoral Reforms - Parties Disagree Over Appointment of INEC Officials
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This Day (Lagos)
24 March 2008
Posted to the web 24 March 2008
Chuks Okocha
Abuja
A committee inaugurated by President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to prepare a common position to be presented to the Justice Mohammed Uwais-led Electoral Reforms Committee has disagreed over major issues.
The committee comprises parties which partner the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the formation of Government of National Unity (GNU).
They are the PDP, All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP), Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) and All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA).
The disagreements are based on the choice of appointment of members of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its chairman.
THISDAY gathered that President Yar'Adua set up the committee of the four political parties to prepare a common position that will be accepted to all Nigerians.
According to a source that spoke to THISDAY, the setting up of the intra parties committee was based on the complaint that the members of the Uwais Electoral Reform Committee comprised non politicians who might not necessary know the actual problems of the electoral system.
Since its composition, the committee, which comprised national chairmen of political parties, has been meeting without any disagreement.
It was gathered that at the last meeting of the parties chaired by Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan, they insisted that the political parties should have a hand in the appointment of members of INEC and those so appointed should be allowed to choose a member among them as chairman.
The name of the member so chosen should then be sent to the President who in turn would send the name to the National Assembly for confirmation.
THISDAY gathered that this suggestion from the ANPP, PPA and PPA did not go well with the PDP and this has so far stalled the meeting, as the PDP was said to have asked for time for consultations.
One of the national chairmen, who disclosed the disagreement to THISDAY said: "We have agreed with the PDP in most of the recommendations. But this time around, we shall stick to our position, because the issue of appointment of members of INEC and the chairman of the body seems to be central to the question of electoral reforms.
"The INEC chairman and the INEC national commissioners are central to electoral malpractices and if we get it right this time on the method of appointment, then we have gone half way in managing the issues of electoral malpractices."
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According to him, "What we want is like what is obtained at the legislative houses, where all the members are elected on partisan level and then they choose a member among them to be chairman on the basis of first among equals."
It was gathered that other areas agreed by the intra parties committee was in the area of funding.
To avoid the electoral commission being tied to the apron string of the presidency the funding should be done independently, he said.
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