Senenator Polycarp Nwite, Senior Presidential Assistant on Political Matters, yesterday blamed the delay of electoral reform bills in the National Assembly on the fear of free and fair elections by most federal lawmakers.

Nwite spoke at a one-day summit organised by the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) on "entrenching positive electoral behaviours in Nigeria."

"Most of the senators want to come back in 2011, but they do not want to go through the primaries, because if there is free and fair election, most of them will not come back.

"That is why when President Umaru Yar'adua sought my opinion on automatic ticket for governors and senators, I said it was undemocratic, and I stand by that advice," he said.

The presidential aide, who relayed the electoral history of the country, told participants that free and fair elections were possible in Nigeria "the same way we enthroned June 12, 1993."

He however said "there cannot be free and fair election until there is internal democracy among the political parties."

The presidential aide faulted the process that led to the emergence of Prof. Chukwuma Soludo as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Anambra State, saying it was undemocratic.

According to him, certain unnamed personalities at the party national secretariat overturned the wish of the people to have a duly elected candidate to represent them during the February 2010 election.

He said: "It is better we don't have a candidate in the Anambra State governorship election than to have an undemocratic candidate."

Prof. Iheanyichukwu Nnaji, IPAC Chairman, in an address said the forum was part of a process to dismantle the culture of impunity in the country's electoral process.

Nnaji, who is also the National Chairman, Better Nigeria Peoples Party, said the forum would build on efforts toward credible, free and fair election.

He said the body, a coalition of the 54 registered political parties, was interested in educating the electorate to oppose ballot box snatching, electoral violence and rigging.

Dr Udenta O. Udenta, a political activist, who spoke on internal democracy among political parties, said three realities confronted the country's democratic experiment.

"The 1999 constitution was not evoked by the people and the defects lead to abuse by the political actors," he said.