As Commission confirms readiness for Edo guber polls
By Myke Uzendu, Abuja
As a result of the recent judgment of the Supreme Court reaffirming fiscal autonomy for local government councils, The Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC), an umbrella body for all the registered political parties in the country, has called for the scrapping of the States Independent National Electoral Commission SIECs.
IPAC said that SIECs lack the capacity and technology to conduct local council polls.
The National Chairman of IPAC, Alhaji Yusuf Mamman Dantalle made the call on Monday in Abuja during the third quarterly consultative meeting between the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) and the leaders of the registered political parties ahead of the forthcoming governorship elections in Edo and Ondo States this year.
Dantalle described the elections being conducted by SIECs as charade and an aberration, dent and mockery of our emerging democracy; a waste of tax payers’ money that ought to have been channeled to developmental projects.
The SIECS, he pointed out, do not have voter registers, BVAS, IReV portals, ballot boxes and trained personnel to conduct credible elections.
According to Dantalle, “As a major stakeholder in the political process, IPAC is unwavering in its quest for electoral integrity, sanctity of the ballot box and respect to the will and mandate of the people, political stability and well-being of Nigerians.
“After 25 years of unbroken democracy, citizens expect and deserve abundant dividends of democracy from governments at all levels to assuage their sufferings.
“IPAC feels the pains of fellow compatriots and has been in touch with relevant authorities with a view to ameliorating the hardship in the land. “This is why we must continue to water and nurture the democracy tree into maturity to yield its fruits to citizens and redirect the nation to the path of prosperity and greatness.
“This requires citizens’ active participation in the democratic process. It also means that governments at all levels must be held accountable as power resides in the people.
“In this regard, IPAC commends the recent financial autonomy granted to the 774 Local Governments in Nigeria following the landmark judgement of the Supreme Court. It will go a long way in transforming the nation and providing basic social amenities to citizens at the third tier of government.
“To further deepen democracy at the grassroots level, IPAC demands the immediate scrapping of the States Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs).
“The charade called elections they conduct is an aberration, dent and mockery of our emerging democracy; a waste of tax payers’ money that ought to have been channeled to developmental projects.
“SIECS do not have voter registers, BVAS, IReV portals, ballot boxes and trained personnel to conduct credible elections.
“The polls they pretend to conduct contribute to voters’ apathy and distrust in the electoral process.
“To restore confidence in the electoral system, INEC should be empowered to conduct all Local Government elections. “Politics is local, citizens should be encouraged to actively participate in grassroots politics and contribute in building a better society.
“In this vein, IPAC calls for the amendment of the Constitution and the Electoral Act to empower INEC to conduct all Local Governments polls. “Council rejects the proposed bill by the Senate to create the so-called Local Government Independent Electoral Commission, bearing in mind that it would be another SIEC in disguise.
“It is unacceptable, ill-conceived, another electoral jamboree that will impede the nation’s democracy and waste public funds at a time when citizens demand a smaller government to reduce the cost of governance”, the IPAC Chairman declared
He insisted that for the forthcoming Edo election, there is no substitute for credible election in order to restore the electoral integrity and mass participation.
Earlier in his remarks, INEC chairman, reminded political parties on the need to upload details of their agents on the portal before it shuts down in the next 48hrs.
The commission said that it is ready for the Edo and Ondo polls despite the challenges it recently had in those locations, affirming that damages to the physical infrastructure has been fixed. He reported that vehicles have been repaired while other movable and immovable facilities have been serviced, refurbished or are being gradually replaced.
According to the INEC boss, “We have delivered additional Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines to Edo State for the training of election duty personnel as well as contingency for Election Day support.
“We have since published the final list of candidates but we are once again sharing the list with party leaders at this meeting, in view of the recent Court Order mandating the Commission to replace the running mate of the candidate of the Labour Party. The amended list is already published on our website.
“Again, the timetable for the collection of uncollected Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs), from previous registration and new registrants from the latest CVR will be published”, he added.
