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Tag: INEC

  • INEC rolls out general elections dates for next 36 years

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Wednesday announced dates for general elections in the country for the next 36 years, starting from 2019 to 2055.

    Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mamood Yakubu, made the announcement at a consultative meeting with leaders of political parties in Abuja.

    “In 2019, the dates are Feb. 16 and March 2; in 2023, the dates are Feb. 18 and March 4.

    “In 2027, the dates are Feb. 20 and March 6; in 2031, it is Feb.15 and March 1.

    “In 2035, it is Feb. 17 and March 3; in 2039, it is Feb.19 and March 5 and in 2043, it will hold on Feb. 21 and March 7.

    “In 2047, it is Feb.15 and March 2; in 2051, it is Feb.18 and March 1; in 2055, it is Feb. 20 and March 6,” Yakubu said.

    He pointed out that in other democracies of the world periods of elections were generally known and were not topics for speculation.
    Yakubu explained that the aim was to engender certainty in the election calendar and allow for long-term planning by the commission and all stakeholders.

    He said that certainty in election calendar was necessary to match Nigeria’s democratic system with global best practices.

    The chairman said that in the last one week, INEC received 108 applications from associations seeking to be registered as political parties.

    He said that 66 of the applications did not meet the initial requirements while 33 passed and had proceeded to the next stage.

    He said that nine others were at the final stage of registration.

    The INEC boss commended political parties for the roles they played in the governorship and National Assembly by-elections in Anambra which ensured that the exercises were crisis-free.

    He urged all existing political parties yet to comply with all relevant sections of the constitutional requirements necessary for their existence, to do so.

    He advised the parties to ensure rancour-free conventions and congresses ahead of 2019 and the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections later in the year.

    “Internal party democracy is critical to the overall success of the elections and it helps to eliminate some protracted litigations.

    “Less than a year to the 2019 general elections, there are still cases in courts, challenging the nomination of candidates in the 2015 elections,’’ he said.

    Yakubu urged the parties to support the commission in its quest to sanitise the voter register by drawing the attention of the umpire to any irregularity.

    In his remarks, the Chairman, Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Alhaji Mohammed Nalado, commended INEC for recognising political parties as partners.

    He said that with little or no financial support, political parties were at the forefront of voter sensitisation to the need to conduct themselves responsibly at polling units.

    Nalado commended the commission for creating an enabling environment for free and fair elections by rolling out election calendar in good time.

    He added that the political parties were happy with the position of INEC on the sequence of elections, saying that the commission acted on the existing law.

    He welcomed the newly-registered political parties to IPAC and urged INEC to support the council’s plan to amend its code of conduct.

    According to Nalado, the amendment will address issues of internal democracy, conflict resolution system among other issues affecting political parties in the country.

     

  • 2019: INEC moves to remove dead persons in voter register

    The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday urged the National Population Commission (NPC) to furnish it with record of dead citizens since 2015 to enable it to “sanitise’’ the voter register.

    Chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, a professor, made the request when he visited the Chairman of NPC, Eze Duruiheoma, in Abuja.

    He said that the records were necessary to enable the electoral umpire to expunge names of dead persons from the national voter register.

    “We will like to partner NPC and ask that the population commission make available records of dead citizens since 2015 to enable us take necessary steps to remove them from the voter register.

    “We are confident that you will oblige us so that we can further clean up our voter register ahead of the 2019 general elections,” Yakubu said.

    According to him, the commission is determined to do whatever it takes to sanitise the voter register as a free, fair and credible election is dependent on a sanitised voter register.

    The chairman said that as provided by the Constitution, both commissions were saddled with similar responsibilities.

    “While INEC is saddled with the responsibility of registering eligible voters, the population commission registers births and deaths of citizens across the country,” he said.

    He disclosed that a draft copy of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between both agencies had been submitted to the population commission for its consideration.

    “When the MoU is signed, it will formalise and enhance collaboration between the sister agencies for the general development of the country,” Yakubu said.

    Responding, Duruiheoma commended INEC for the initiative to sanitise the voter register using records of NPC.

    He said the collaboration between the sister agencies in the performance of statutory duties was very pivotal to national development.

    According to Duruiheoma, “if we get our elections and censuses right, our nation will be on the way to greatness.”

    He said that the commission would commence the process of making the records of deaths across the country available to INEC.

    He, however, said that the commission could not pretend to have the records of every birth or death that had occurred since 2015.

    “We look forward to the day when every single birth or death case will be efficiently documented by the commission,” Duruijeoma said.

    He said that copies of the MoU had been circulated among relevant officers within the commission and that necessary inputs were already being made.

    He assured the INEC chairman of his readiness to sign the MoU once it was finalised.

  • Green Party kicks against reordering 2019 elections timetable

    The Green Party of Nigeria (GPN) said on Tuesday that the reordering of the 2019 elections timetable by the National Assembly would lead to unnecessary huge financial burden on the country.

    The party’s Chairman in Edo, Mr Roy Oribhabor, said in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Benin that the GNP was seriously bothered about the move by the legislators.

    He also said that the GNP would back holding the elections in one day.

    “We are seriously bothered about the logistics problem and the financial implications of this legislative action considering the hard situation in Nigeria today,” Oribhabor said.

    He said rather than re-ordering the elections, NASS should explore the possibilities of fixing all the elections to hold in one day.

    “We have listened to all arguments for and against the reordering, but they all lacked the direct solution to our political problems, I therefore called on NASS to use its legislative power to fix the election for one day.

    “It is on record that the 1979 general elections were held in one day and the system gave room for total political participation by all parties, the electorates were able to choose their candidates of interest.

    “We are convinced beyond reasonable doubts that, when all elections are held in one day, the system will give room for more parties to win.

    “Therefore, GPN support one day election because the advantages are superb, it reduces cost, encourage total participation and gives room for more political space,’’ Oribhabor said.

    He advised NASS to make it a legislative duty to make laws not targeted at individuals but for the goods of Nigeria and Nigerians.

     

  • INEC rejects election timetable amended by NASS

    INEC rejects election timetable amended by NASS

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has rejected the amended version of the 2019 election timetable by the National Assembly.

    The amended election timetable puts the presidential election first before the national and state assembly elections.

    The Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, says the electoral body has no reason to change the current sequence of the 2019 general elections released based on the provision of the existing laws.

    Professor Yakubu, who disclosed this in Abuja at a regular consultative meeting with the media, did not rule out the possibility of looking at the sequence of the election timetable if there was any compelling issue.

    “On 9th January, we issued the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2019 General Elections based on our powers and extant laws and nothing has changed. There is a principle behind the choice of these dates- as our democracy matures, we should be moving from uncertainty to certainty.

    “As far as the Commission is concerned, there is no legal lacuna for now; we are working based on existing laws.

    But if something happens tomorrow, we will come out clear and tell Nigerians, but I think we are not operating based on conjectures,” he said.

    The INEC chairman, who reiterated the concern of the electoral body over what he called “monetization of the electoral process,” said the commission was already working with security agencies to stop the menace.

    Professor Yakubu said INEC was optimistic about the conduct of free, fair and credible general elections in view of its continued engagement with critical stakeholders in the electoral process.

    He said the commission had finished all the preparatory steps for the 2019 general elections, adding that practical steps had been taken to implement provisions of the Election Project Plan (EPP).

    The INEC chairman said the commission was making efforts to ensure that voting process was easier for persons living with disabilities (PWDs), including pregnant and lactating women as well as the aged.

    He ruled out the possibility of giving opportunities for underage voters in national elections conducted by the INEC, stressing that the electoral body would do “whatever it takes to clean up the voter register so that only those who are eligible are allowed to vote”.

     

  • All registered voters will get PVCs before 2019 – INEC assures Nigerians

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday said eligible persons registered in ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) would get their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) before 2019 general elections.

    The Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, made this known at an interactive session with newsmen in Abuja.

    “Those who registered in 2017, their PVCs will be ready in May; for those who registered in 2018 and those who intend to register will all get their PVCs before the 2019 general elections.

    “For now, we are giving priority attention to Ekiti and Osun governorship elections but all registered Nigerians will get their PVCs before the elections,” he said.

    Yakubu said that there were 1,446 centres across the country where the voter registration was ongoing, adding that 400 Direct Data Capture machines had been deployed to hasten the process.

    He said that the commission was committed to conducting free, fair and credible elections and improving the electoral process in the country.

    He urged the media to monitor the process of forthcoming governorship elections in Osun and Ekiti and report grey areas for immediate actions by the commission.

    The INEC helmsman said that the media should collaborate with the commission on the task of ensuring credible elections by exposing any form of irregularities.

    He said that discussions were ongoing with telecommunication providers to ascertain the availability of 4G and 3G networks in rural areas to support transmission of election results electronically from polling stations.

    He said that the order of the 2019 elections as announced by the commission remained until a new law on elections was enacted.

    Yakubu said the commission had completed all preparatory steps ahead the elections and that the election budget would be presented to the appropriate authorities before the end of the week.

    He disclosed that the committee constituted to investigate alleged registration of under-age persons in Kano would commence work on Wednesday.

    According to him, the commission knows that a credible election begins with a credible voter register and the commission is interested in knowing what exactly happened in Kano.

    The chairman assured that only credible voter register would be used to conduct elections in 2019.

    In separate contributions, journalists urged the commission to train and monitor the activities of its ad hoc personnel, saying that it was necessary to reduce chances of being compromised.

    They urged the electoral umpire to consider the transfer of rural polling units in the North-East to urban centres so as not to disenfranchise Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

  • Underage voters: PDP rejects INEC’s 8-man committee

    The Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) has rejected in its totality, the composition and scope of the eight-man, in-house committee, set up by the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to investigate the existence of underage voters, particularly in Kano and Katsina states.

    The PDP also noted that the fact that the All Progressives Congress (APC) rose in staunch defence of INEC over the existence of the underage voters has further confirmed that the ruling party has more than vested interests in the illegality.

    At any rate, who enjoys the company of fleas like one with an open sore, the PDP noted in a statement by its National Publicityr Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Sunday.

    According to the party, the panel constituted by INEC lacks credibility as it comprises of members of the same indicted INEC, adding that they have been detailed to arrive at predetermined findings and recommendations aimed at exonerating the Prof. Yakubu-led commission and play down on the electoral implications of the existence of underage voters.

    In rejecting the composition of the committee, the PDP also repudiates the scope of the inquest, particularly the exclusion of Katsina state from the probe, despite vast evidence of underage voters in that state.

    Nigerians have been wondering why INEC is afraid of looking at its register in Katsina state. Is it because Katsina is the home state of President Muhammodu Buhari and a probe is likely to expose cans of worms?

    Is INEC afraid that a sanitized register would lead to a massive drop in the voting population in the state and cripple APC’s rigging plan?

    Nigerians are also wondering why INEC has vehemently refused to include other stakeholders, including political parties, credible NGOs and Civil Society Organizations in this important assignment to guarantee its credibility.

    We hold that by excluding other stakeholders, INEC is definitely not sincere with the sanitization of INEC voters’ register in Kano, Katsina and other states where, out of intimidation, it is allowing the registration of minors.

    INEC under Prof. Yakubu is already manifesting weaknesses and bias, which further confirms why it should not be trusted in the conduct of the 2019 general elections.

    Consequently, the PDP and all aligning stakeholders will not accept any findings or recommendations from INEC’s in-house committee, as such will not reflect the reality on the ground regarding the contaminated register.

    Furthermore, we insist that INEC must be bold enough to extend the inquest to Katsina state as well as other states where minors were registered unless it wants the world to believe that it had already caved into pressure ahead of the 2019 general elections.

    The PDP therefore charges Prof. Yakubu to quickly redeem his name by immediately disbanding the flawed committee and set up a more credible and transparent panel made up of political parties, credible NGOs and CSOs and extend the inquest to Katsina and other states.

    Prof. Yakubu must understand that his allegiance is to Nigeria and not the APC. INEC under him must not lose its credibility or be reduced to an annex of the APC and it’s failed Presidency, as such would be resisted.

    Indeed, Nigerians would not accept anything short of a credible, free and fair general elections in 2019 and any attempt by any one to pander towards the rejected APC with a view to subvert the determined will of the people will have himself to blame.

     

  • INEC receives Facebook team ahead of 2019 general elections

    Ahead of 2019 general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Wednesday received a Facebook team led by its Head Of Public Policy for Africa, Ebele Okobi at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

    Facebook offered to explore avenues with the commission that could help expand voters’ education and engage citizens meaningfully to achieve peaceful general elections in 2019.

    The social networking giant made this offer having noticed that topics Nigerians mostly shared on its platform bordered on elections and politics

    Facebook, which noted that it has a membership base of 2.1 billion worldwide and 80 million from Nigeria, discovered that “people care very deeply about how they are governed, about who governs them and other political issues”.

    “Knowing that people come to the platform to talk about what they care about, we have developed a politics and government programme essentially to understand how our platform is being used, not just during elections, but also to help governments engage with their citizens and also to see what the risks related to our platform in elections are and what opportunities and programmes can be put in place to address the risks,” Okobi told INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, and members of his commission.

    The Facebook Head disclosed that the company was open to ideas on how best it could improve its services and the electoral processes in Africa, particularly in Nigeria.

    Responding, the INEC boss, Yakubu told the team that organizing and conducting elections was a huge responsibility for the commission and comes with enormous risks.

    “A good election, I have always said, is a recipe for peace and a poorly conducted election could lead to violence and civil war. And part of it is the perception some people create on the social media,” he said.

    He acknowledged the large following the electoral body enjoy on Facebook, which he said is the largest among election management bodies in Africa, and underscored its potentials for engaging citizens, disseminating information and dispelling fake news for peaceful elections.

    While acknowledging that Facebook has become one of the veritable means of interacting with the public, Yakubu said, “I think more people now get their news from the social media than the traditional media”.

    The INEC chairman thanked Facebook for pulling down fake pages of the commission from its platform just as it commended, “the social media giant” for also putting mechanisms for checking hate speech and fake news in place.

    He said the commission looked forward to working with Facebook in ensuring that the voting population gets the best to help them make informed choices at the polls.

     

  • Bakassi : S’Court set aside judgment compelling INEC to conduct election in 10 new wards

    The Supreme Court on Friday set aside the decision of the Court of Appeal, Calabar which compelled INEC to conduct elections in the 10 wards of Ikang, Bakassi Local Government Area of Cross River State.

    Delivering the judgment, Justice John Okoro held that it was the constitutional responsibility of the electoral body to create electoral wards and not the state.

    The Cross River State House of Assembly had adjusted the old three Ikang wards in Akpabuyo Local Government Area to 10 in line with Law No. 7 of Cross River State 2007.

    The judge, also held that the state had the right to make such law, adding that the “Law No.7’’ was not illegal.

    He said the law did not create any constituencies, but adjusted boundaries of Akpabuyo to accommodate Bakassi.

    Okoro therefore, said albeit the two lower courts were wrong to have ordered INEC to conduct elections in areas it did not delineate for that purpose.

    “The decision of the Court of Appeal, Calabar is set aside but the commission should do the needful by formally delineating the 10 wards in Ikang for election purposes.

    “The people of Bakassi have suffered enough and they should be made to have sense of belonging’’, he said.

    Dissatisfied with the decisions of the lower court, INEC had approached the apex court praying it to set aside the two judgments.

    The other appellant in the matter was the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Cross River State.

    The appellants by this appeal registered their grievances with the decision of the Court of Appeal, Calabar delivered on Dec.6, 2013 dismissing their appeal against the judgment of Justice A.F.A Ademola of the Federal High Court, Calabar.

    The respondents are Muri Asuquo, Chief Antigha Cobham, Chief Bassey Etim, and Chief Effiong Iman.

    The respondents had initiated the case on behalf of the people of Ikang Clan, Esighi Clan, Antigha Ene Eyo Clan and Eduhu Idim Ikot Eyi Clan of Bakassi Local Government Area.

    Based on the notice and grounds of appeal filed as aforementioned, the Appellants formulated four issues for formulation.

    They had urged the apex court to ascertain whether or not the law No.7, 2007 which the lower court upheld in its judgment, was enforceable, lifeless, in-abeyance and or inchoate.

    The appellant further sought the court’s explanation whether or not the lower court was right when it entertained in suit No. FHC/C/41/2012 for the second time the same issues it had conclusively resolved.

    They also asked the court to decide on whether or not the creation and delineation and adjustment of the boundaries of the tow local government area in No.7 for the 2012 governorship election was legal.

    The appellants further asked to know whether or not the judgment of the lower court which ordered the appellants to conduct the 2012 governorship election in the 10 wards was not illegal.

  • INEC will cancel election in any troublesome ward – REC

    INEC will cancel election in any troublesome ward – REC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it will cancel elections in wards with irregularities.

    Prof. Francis Ezeonu, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Imo, said elections in areas where ballot boxes were seized or where voting was marred by any violence would be voided.

    The electoral commissioner said this on Friday while carrying out sensitisation campaign in Aboh Mbaise Local Government area of Imo.

    He said INEC was prepared for free and fair elections devoid of violence and intimidation and urged stakeholders to cooperate with the commission to achieve this objective.

    “INEC will not accept results in areas where ballot papers or boxes are carted away by hoodlums or any group or individuals. Election in that area will be cancelled.

    “What INEC needs is cooperation from members of the community.

    “If INEC does not receive cooperation of people in the communities, things will not be okay. I advise politicians and stakeholders to play by the rules and play good politics,” he said.

    Ezeonu reiterated the commitment of INEC to conduct credible polls in the forth coming general elections.

    He urged politicians to always ensure their followers enjoyed dividends of democracy to pave way for their re-election.

    The electoral commissioner advised the people of Aboh Mbaise to ensure that all eligible voters in the area got their PVCs and went out and vote during election.

    He said election in Nigeria would no longer be business as usual, adding that INEC was tightening its ropes against all aspects of rigging.

    Ezeonu promised that the state INEC would ensure that all eligible voters registered through provision of more registration machines and re-visiting places where people were yet to be captured.

    Earlier, Mr Clement Archibong , the Electoral Officer in Aboh Mbaise, said the commission had registered a total of 6,311 prospective voters since registration was taken to the electoral wards as ordered by the commission .

    He, however, said that the local government had 2,820 uncollected permanent voters cards and called on stakeholders to carry the message to their various communities for the owners to come and take them.

    Mrs Esther Emeruche, the Technical Committee Chairman of Aboh Mbaise, called on INEC to be an unbiased electoral umpire and should not be party to rigging by announcing results in violent areas.

    Some stakeholders, which consisted of traditional rulers, representatives of political parties, youth, women and town union leaders, commended INEC in the state on the sensitisation and the assurance of credible elections.

    They advised INEC against bringing in faulty registration and card reader machines for registration and for elections, saying that faulty machines were means of election rigging.

    They also wanted INEC to revisit areas where people were yet to be captured to have more registered voters.

    They called for continuous publicity and enlightenment on the voter registration exercise and collection of PVCs.

    Eze Emmanuel Mad, a traditional ruler in Aboh Mbaise, expressed gratitude to INEC in the state and urged it to fulfill all its promises as well as ensure it conducted credible elections come 2019.

    Mr Mike Iheanetu,a member representing Aboh Mbaise State Constituency, advised the people of Aboh Mbaise against political and voter apathy.

    He enjoined them to go out, register and obtain their PVCs, saying it is their power to vote and elect good leaders.

     

  • JUST IN: PDP seeks resignation of INEC Chairman, Yakubu

    The Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) has passed a vote of no confidence on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, asking him to resign.

    This is coming after tainted voters’ register was used to conduct recent elections in Kano and Katsina states that allegedly had underaged voters, the PDP said.

    The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, called for Yakubu’s resignation at a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday.

    He asked that the electoral commission Chairman to immediately commence the cleaning of the voters’ register in the two states with the help of credible stakeholders or vacate his office.

    The PDP said with the current state of underaged voters, INEC cannot be trusted to conduct free, fair and credible polls in next year’s general election except the register is cleaned up.

    The spokesman also described as illegal and unacceptable the partnership between INEC and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on plans to start monitoring the campaign funds of political parties as that responsibility only belongs to the electoral commission.