By Ezenwa Nwagu
The recent Supreme Court ruling granting autonomy to local government areas in Nigeria has sparked a heated debate on the role of State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs).
While some have called for the scrapping of SIECs, citing their perceived ineffectiveness, it is my opinion, having invested time and effort over the years in Nigeria’s Electoral and democratic space, that this move could have far-reaching and devastating consequences for Nigeria’s democratic system.
The State Independent Electoral Commissions are created under the 1999 Constitution with the mandate to organise, undertake and supervise all elections to local government councils within the State.
As part of this discourse, we will attempt to highlight the concerns of those calling for the abolition of SIECs, but will pay greater emphasis on the reform needed to strengthen the SIECs instead of replacing it with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Firstly, the proponents of scrapping the SIECs argue that the commissions have failed to deliver credible local government elections, citing instances of electoral malpractices and inefficiencies.
While I agree with this argument, however, abolishing SIECs and centralizing election management under the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) or any federal organization is not the solution.
Before we delve into the consequences of scrapping the SIECS and offer some recommendations, let us attempt to look at the possible reasons that may have led to their inability to deliver on their mandate.
There is no doubt that the SIECs have failed to live up to expectations because of the non-functional legal systems at the state level, inadequate financing, and restricted election and management powers. These elements have led to shoddy and erroneous local council elections experience, since the return of democracy in 1999.
But with the Supreme Court Judgement granting financial autonomy to the local government areas, more states are now gearing to hold elections in that tier of government.
Will the donor community, the civil society organisations, the media, the political parties, the governors and the State House of Assemblies give support, goodwill and the needful assistance to these managers of council elections?
Council elections, to my own mind, are much more important than State and Federal elections. The reason being that local government is the closest to the people in the communities. It is the people’s first contact with governance. Unfortunately, most of those who have been managing these 774 LGAs in Nigeria belong to the ‘locust generation’.
The call for the abolition of SIECs have various consequences. It is imperative that if democracy will be consolidated in Nigeria, we must resist that urge for the following reasons.
Firstly, centralizing election management would undermine state autonomy and imperil the federal system. The Constitution allows for the devolution of powers to states, and abolishing SIECs would concentrate excessive power in the federal government. This would weaken state autonomy and undermine the principles of federalism.
Secondly, INEC is already overburdened with numerous responsibilities, including organizing presidential, gubernatorial, and legislative elections. Adding local government elections to its portfolio would further strain its resources, leading to inefficiencies and compromising the integrity of elections.
This call could have a negative impact on INEC. An already overburdened INEC will be strained by this idea, leading to ill-run local elections. INEC is responsible for a plethora of tasks, including off-cycle governorship elections, bye-elections, and rerun elections. Throughout the election cycle, the commission is continuously engaged in the registration and oversight of political parties, voter registration, the creation of election guidelines and materials, and the nomination of candidates. The Commission would be put under an additional burden if it is also tasked with organising local government elections. This could result in decreased efficacy in overseeing electoral procedures and inefficiencies in administration. The Constitution’s fundamental right to free and fair elections would be violated by this onerous duty, which would also jeopardise election integrity.
Rather than calling for the abolition of SIECs, Nigeria should focus on reforms to strengthen their autonomy, independence, and effectiveness. This can be achieved by:
Strengthen the SIECs’ autonomy and independence: To remain independent, the SIECs’ financial independence needs to be guaranteed. This can be accomplished by moving SIECs’ funding to a first-line charge, as done with INEC. As a result, SIECs will become financially and administratively independent. Furthermore, it will lead to periodic or regular elections at the local level.
Review the process of appointments into SIECs: The power to appoint the Chairperson and members of SIECs should be reviewed. We recommend that the appointment process should be reviewed to a process of establishing an ad-hoc committee for the sole purpose of the appointment of members of the commission. The committee should comprise diverse stakeholders such as personnel of security agencies (the police), CSOs, and other relevant stakeholder groups. The ad-hoc committee should be responsible for the nomination of members of the commission and the confirmation will be by the state assembly.
Introduce timelines for appointment in SIECs: The National Assembly should amend the Constitution to introduce timelines for appointing the members of the boards of SIECs. To avoid delaying the formation of the commissions’ boards. This timeline can be extended to accommodate the establishment of the proposed appointing ad-hoc committee for boards of SIECs.
Compel State Assemblies to amend state electoral laws: To preserve the integrity of local government elections, the National Assembly included a clause governing LGA election procedures in the 2022 Electoral Act. The Act required SIECs to hold local elections according to the guidelines provided in the 2022 Electoral Act.
By implementing these reforms, Nigeria can ensure that SIECs deliver credible local government elections without compromising state autonomy or federalism. The dangers of centralizing election management far outweigh any perceived benefits, and Nigeria must prioritize reforms over abolition.
It is my opinion that civil society organisations, the media and other stakeholders must join in the advocacy and campaign against the abolishment of SIECs. We must instead embark on the campaign for electoral reforms in the areas mentioned above. The National Assembly and the Executive arm of government to address these issues, through a legal reform that will strengthen SIECs.
Ezenwa Nwagu, the executive Director of the Peering Advocacy and Advancement Center in Africa (PAACA) writes from Abuja
