The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has expressed confidence in its ability to manage local government elections effectively if tasked with this responsibility.
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Thursday, addressed the joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters regarding preparations for the upcoming governorship elections in Edo and Ondo States.
He mentioned that the elections would not be conducted in a single day. He also stated that while INEC has the capacity to manage the local government elections, this would only be feasible if the law is amended to grant it the necessary authority.
He highlighted that the Commission has been successfully conducting area council elections in the Federal Capital Territory without encountering the issues typically associated with local government elections.
He said some advantages of INEC handling elections to include that there are regular elections as when due, stability of tenure, and also that there has never been a caretaker committee in the FCT.
Yakubu also said that no single political party has ever won all the seats in the elections, a common occurrence in state elections. He asserted that if INEC were to oversee these elections, it would greatly benefit democracy.
However, he noted that this change would require a constitutional amendment to transfer the responsibility from the state electoral commissions to INEC.
In the event, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu emphasized the greater challenges associated with conducting off-cycle elections compared to general elections. He also expressed concerns about security in the upcoming Edo State election, particularly with the anticipated deployment of the Edo State Security Network for the polls.
INEC has reported that the recent flooding at their Edo office affected some BVAS machines, but they were able to recover most of them. Additionally, INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu highlighted that the power of incumbency poses a significant challenge to the conduct of elections. Despite these issues, Yakubu affirmed that INEC is prepared for the upcoming elections in both states.
His words, “You wanted to know the position of the Commission on issues surrounding the Supreme Court judgement and local government elections, the position of the Commission. So far we have had three broad positions canvassed. One, the transfer of responsibility for the conduct of local government elections to INEC. The question is if that is done, can INEC cope? The second proposition we have had is that there should be a new federal electoral commission for local government elections and thirdly there is another argument that says leave the state electoral commission to conduct local government elections in the spirit of federalism but find a way of ensuring that they improve on the conduct of local government elections.
“As it stands, the law has not been amended. The same Constitution that establishes INEC also establishes State Electoral Commissions. Therefore, it is up to the National Assembly to amend the law to transfer the responsibility of conducting local government elections to INEC. If this responsibility is transferred to INEC, can the commission handle it? The answer is yes—INEC can manage the task effectively.”
“What are we? By definition, INEC is the Independent National Electoral Commission but right now we do national elections, we do state elections, we do local government elections. A national electoral commission may be expected to handle only the Presidential and National Assembly elections but we also do governorship elections, we do State Assembly elections and do the Area Councils Elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the only part of the country where INEC conducts local government elections.
“If we are asked to conduct these elections, we can certainly do it, and our track record proves this capability. For instance, consider the case of the FCT local government elections. There are six Area Councils in the FCT, each with its own chairman, and 62 wards, each representing a councillorship constituency for the election of councilors. INEC has successfully conducted local government elections in the FCT, leading to the following outcomes:”
Firstly, the FCT stands out as one of the few regions in the country where local government elections are consistently held on schedule. Secondly, the FCT has never experienced a Caretaker Committee for any of its Area Councils, with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) overseeing regular elections. Thirdly, the stability of tenure for Area Councils in the FCT has improved: it was previously three years, but the National Assembly amended the Electoral Act in 2022 to extend it to four years. Lastly, no single political party has ever secured victories in all constituencies within the FCT. Notably, in the recent elections, the APC and PDP each won three Area Councils, reflecting a balanced political landscape without dominant party control.
“Many Nigerians are concerned that if INEC is tasked with conducting local government elections, similar issues might arise, potentially affecting our democracy. However, the Constitution establishes both INEC and the State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs). Until the Constitution is amended to transfer the responsibility to INEC, the current arrangement will remain in place.”
In any case, transferring local government elections to INEC would significantly increase its responsibilities. Currently, there are 8,809 wards, each representing a councillorship constituency, and 774 local government areas, each with a chairman. This totals 9,583 constituencies. When combined with the existing 1,591 constituencies for which INEC already conducts elections, this would result in over 11,000 constituencies. Although such a volume of elections might not be held on a single day, the shift would represent a substantial administrative challenge
“In terms of capacity, INEC is well-equipped to handle this responsibility, as demonstrated by our successful operations in the Federal Capital Territory. However, if the National Assembly decides to amend the Constitution to assign this role to INEC, we will need to engage in discussions with them. There are several consequential amendments required for us to manage these additional responsibilities effectively. For instance, funding for the 10,000 new constituencies must be addressed. We need to clarify whether the Federal Government will continue to provide funding for the states, or if alternative arrangements will be made.
Additionally, managing bye-elections will become more complex. With the addition of 10,000 constituencies, the frequency of bye-elections could potentially increase to a weekly occurrence. Therefore, it is crucial to address these logistical and financial considerations to ensure smooth implementation.”
“Generally speaking, we are confident in our ability to manage local government elections. However, for this to occur, the law must be amended to grant the commission the necessary authority. Currently, out of the 13 required activities leading up to the election from the publication of election notices to the actual conduct of the election we have successfully completed eight.”
“We are currently on our ninth activity, and we have not had to shift any activity by a single day. We have successfully implemented these activities in both Edo and Ondo without any issues.
The ninth activity involves the submission of polling agents’ names by political parties. For Edo, this deadline is set for July 30th, while for Ondo, it is September 30th.
The Commission is fully prepared for the election. Despite the unfortunate flooding at our Edo office—a recurring issue since 2020, when we had to operate from a rented facility—we have ample time to address the situation. Thankfully, the flooding occurred early enough, allowing us to respond effectively and ensure that the election proceeds smoothly from our facilities.”
“Our primary concern for the Edo State governorship election is security. During our visit, one of the political parties raised concerns about the possible deployment of the Edo State Security Network (ESSN). Upon receiving this complaint, we promptly convened a meeting with the Commissioner of Police and all security agencies in Edo State. We agreed to engage with all political parties, which we did the following day. At this meeting, the Commissioner of Police assured the party leaders that he would address their concerns with the state government.”
“At that time, the primary issue was the ongoing continuous voter registration. Since then, I have not received any official complaints from any party or candidate regarding the role of the ESSN. I trust that the Commissioner of Police has engaged with the ESSN leadership, and everything has been progressing smoothly.
We have completed the continuous voter registration process. Currently, we are focusing on validating a few registered voters. Specifically, there are 82 in Edo and 164 in Ondo. Validation for these voters commenced on Monday, and as of yesterday, we have achieved a 72 percent success rate.”
“We are undertaking this process because, as required by law, we must display the voter registers for public claims and objections, and conduct the Automated Biometrics Identification System (ABIS) check.
We are dissatisfied with the quality of the biometrics for 246 out of the over 260,000 registered voters, which represents just 0.03 percent. It is our duty to ensure that every registered Nigerian can vote smoothly during elections. Therefore, we are committed to addressing these issues. By next week, we will publish the final results of the continuous voter registration for Edo State.”
“The second concern we often grapple with is the complexity of conducting off-cycle governorship elections. For the Commission, these elections pose greater challenges compared to general elections. This difficulty arises because, unlike general elections where the focus is broad, off-cycle governorship elections involve a concentrated effort. Political parties mobilize their entire support base, including governors and legislators, to back their candidates. This intensifies the competition and makes the logistics of managing such elections more demanding.
“It becomes extremely challenging for us. During the Nigerian elections, each of you will be engaged in your respective constituencies, fighting your own battles. However, this particular situation requires you to focus on a smaller constituency, making the management of the process significantly more difficult. For example, in Osun, I experienced firsthand the challenges; the local hotels were fully booked by politicians during the signing of the peace accord. I was fortunate to secure just one room. The next day, I had to quickly travel to Akure to return to Abuja. The pressure on all facilities in such scenarios makes the situation even more complex.
Thirdly, the power of incumbency is often exploited to benefit or harm specific parties and candidates, which contravening the Electoral Act. This legislation prohibits using the power of incumbency to favor or disadvantage any political party or candidate. This includes restrictions on outdoor advertisements, state media campaigns, and the use of state facilities such as stadia and public spaces for political purposes.”
“Previous elections have seen this issue arise, and with the campaign heating up, it is likely to become a prominent topic again. Despite these concerns, progress has been made. In Edo State, 17 political parties are fielding candidates for the upcoming election. However, only one female candidate is running, and there are no candidates with disabilities.”
“In Ondo State, we have 17 candidates, with no female candidates among them. There is one person with a disability, who is the governorship candidate for the ADC.
In Edo State, we have approved 134 observers for the election, including 124 domestic observers and 10 international observers. We will soon begin printing the voter register for both states.
Regarding election technology in Edo State, we have.’
“During the recent flooding incident at our office, a significant number of BVAS machines were damaged. Fortunately, we managed to recover over 3,500 of the approximately 4,000 BVAS machines in Edo State, and they are all fully operational. Since this is an off-cycle election, we were able to source additional machines from neighboring states.
Additional BVAS machines from Abia arrived in Edo yesterday, 58 days before the election. We are now well-prepared on that front.”