Electoral absurdities swept under the carpet do not help any democracy; rather they kill and bury the system.
As the most critical institution in our democratic process, accountability and transparency demand that Yakubu reveals totally what transpired at the agency he heads. His obscurantist approach deepens doubts, rather than clearing the miasma. The so-called "glitches" or "neglect" that savaged the electoral process, for which N305 billion of public funds was expended, were not isolated in some polling units, but was a national enigma.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is seemingly singing a redemption song with its resolve to bar its members of staff found "negligent", whether they are regular or ad hoc, including Collation and Returning Officers, involved in the weird conduct of the 25 February presidential and National Assembly elections from participating in next Saturday's polls. Governors and states assembly lawmakers will be on the ballot this time around. All shades of opinions have been torrential, scathing, and in some cases, sycophantic in relation to these elections. New vistas have been unfurled, sparking spells of anxiety, rage, half-truths, and obfuscations by hirelings of hue to mask realities.
It is interesting that the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, in an in-house review of performance with INEC State Commissioners a few days ago, admitted that there were indeed challenges in the conduct of the last polls and vowed to eviscerate them with harder work this Saturday. The Commission's earlier apologia on "technical glitches" didn't obliterate the spectre of suspicion it has become shrouded in. In Yakubu's optimism that "going forward the system will run optimally," one rational deduction that be made from it is that results will be uploaded real time - this time - from polling units to its IReV portal through the Biomodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS).
The earlier breach is the gravamen of the complaints of political parties, local and foreign observers about the credibility of the 25 February results announced by INEC. Section 64 (4) (a) of the Electoral Act 2022, as amended, on the electronic transmission of results was not complied with in the presidential polls. The word "Shall" is expressly stated in this provision, which makes compliance obligatory or inviolable, legally speaking.
Why this was not followed in the collation of presidential results alone, against the backdrop of the fact that senatorial and House of Representative elections held same day, and were uploaded in line with the law, has not ceased to arouse curiosity. The INEC boss has put himself on the spot. It behoves him to tell Nigerians more than the "negligent" explanation. It is obviously, a facile and empty excuse, which at best, is an indictment of the agency.
As the most critical institution in our democratic process, accountability and transparency demand that Yakubu reveals totally what transpired at the agency he heads. His obscurantist approach deepens doubts, rather than clearing the miasma. The so-called "glitches" or "neglect" that savaged the electoral process, for which N305 billion of public funds was expended, were not isolated in some polling units, but was a national enigma.
A new dimension to the presidential election cacophony is what the correct interpretation of Section 34 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended is, that requires the winner to not only win the majority of lawful votes cast, but also 25% of the votes cast in 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory, for the purpose of national spread. The controversy is whether the FCT is a must win for the declared winner.
Nigeria's elections and their outcomes since 1999 have reached a point where we should be more concerned about the integrity of the electoral process, rather than who emerges as winners of elective offices, for the sake of democratic consolidation. Virtually, all international election observers, especially the European Union (EU), NDI, IRI, AU and others who regularly constitute technical partners to Nigeria in every election, have lacerated INEC for its shoddy outing so far; just as our local observers.
One of them, Yiaga Africa, said it observed discrepancies in the results it collected in Imo and Rivers States, when juxtaposed with what INEC published. According to it, Peter Obi of Labour Party's (LP) votes tally in Imo State was 88.1% as against the 77.1% that was announced, while in Rivers State, he notched 50.8% of votes and not the 33.4% declared.
There were late arrivals of materials at some centres by 4.30 p.m., when 2.30 p.m. was the official time to close polling. This disenfranchised a lot of voters who had thronged the polling units early but did not have the patience to endure for more than eight hours for officials to arrive. Violence, voter intimidation by gunmen and the destruction of thumb-printed ballot papers at polling units and in some cases outright hijacking of materials by electoral bandits, were induced strategies some candidates adopted to outfox opponents in their strongholds.
A new dimension to the presidential election cacophony is what the correct interpretation of Section 34 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended is, that requires the winner to not only win the majority of lawful votes cast, but also 25% of the votes cast in 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory, for the purpose of national spread. The controversy is whether the FCT is a must win for the declared winner. The APC candidate, Bola Tinubu did not win it there with his 18.8 per cent votes, while Obi was the only candidate with 60%.
As it is on every legal issue, opinions of senior lawyers are divergent. But a former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Michael Aondoakaa, says a 2008 Supreme Court judgement in an Election Petition case, which involved the late Umaru Yar'Adua, versus Muhammadu Buhari, settled the debate with its conjunctive reading of the section, making the FCT a mandatory win. Obi and Atiku Abubakar have obtained Court of Appeal ex parte orders to inspect INEC electoral materials in search of the silver bullet evidence for their respective victory claims. Let the legal fireworks begin!
Abuses of our electoral process were why the Smart Card readers, Permanent Voter Card and now BVAS were introduced into the system to guarantee the sovereign will of the people in any election. To trifle with it will ineluctably lead to self-immolation.
Electoral absurdities swept under the carpet do not help any democracy; rather they kill and bury the system. Facts already in the public space in respect of past elections show clearly that INEC officials compromise the system. The Commission had in 2017 admitted that its staff collected over N3 billion as bribe in the 2015 general elections. A report of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) revealed a more staggering amount - the deployment of about N23 billion, after its investigation of 282 INEC staff, both serving and retired.
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Abuses of our electoral process were why the Smart Card readers, Permanent Voter Card and now BVAS were introduced into the system to guarantee the sovereign will of the people in any election. To trifle with it will ineluctably lead to self-immolation.
My experience in the 2007 presidential election in Kano, which I was posted from Abuja to cover, has left a scar in my psyche over what elections are in this clime. While waiting at the Kano State INEC headquarters, along with party agents, other reporters and an AIG of Police, for full collation of results from the 44 local governments areas, a sarcastic call from Abuja came to me: "What are you still doing in Kano, INEC has declared the result?"
My riposte was uncouth. The fellow, a journalist too, in Abuja, asked me to watch any television around if in doubt. Lo and behold, that was it; the culmination of the "do-or-die" garrison mentality to that democratic transition. Non-serialisation of the ballot papers was thought by all, especially, President Muhammadu Buhari, a candidate in that poll, to be enough evidence to seek legal redress. The rest, as often said, is history.
This country has since resolved not to tread this path again. It must be kept! The contrary diminishes us all.
Chiawolamoke Nwankwo is member of Premium Times' Editorial Board.
