The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is seeking powers to disqualify candidates commencing from the 2015 general elections. It also wants a 10-year ban on those found guilty of electoral offences.
To achieve this, the commission is seeking an amendment to Section 31 of the Electoral Act to impose a N1million fine on any party which fields an unqualified candidate. Such parties may also be disqualified from participating in that particular election.
Even though INEC admitted enjoying financial autonomy, it still put forward a strong case for full independence to shield it from independence.
This was all part of the 19 proposals contained in the document the commission submitted to Chief Ike Ekweremadu, the Chairman of the National Assembly’s Constitutional Review and the Deputy President of the Senate.
Atop the list of proposals is INEC’s demand for powers to disqualify candidates, an issue which dominated the countdown to the 2007 polls.
The document reads in part: “With such decisions as Atiku Abubakar V INEC and the proviso to Section 31 of the amended Electoral Act, the commission has no right to prevent even an obviously unqualified candidate or disqualified person from being on the ballot.”
“For instance, it cannot prevent an under-aged or foreign citizen from contesting the election, even when this is obvious from the documents submitted, or even when a person who admits that he presented a forged certificate to the commission if it seeks to disqualify such persons.”
“This is not desirable. INEC should have the power to do so, (subject to judicial review, of course), if there is a prima facie case shown from the documentation that the candidate is unqualified. INEC is not just a management body, but also a regulatory one and should have some powers in that regard, just like such bodies as NDIC and the Central Bank of Nigeria (in revoking bank licenses, approving bank directors, etc), and NAFDAC (in sealing unregistered pharmaceutical companies or seizing bad products).”
“In this regard, Part 1, Paragraph F, item 15 of the Third Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) dealing with the powers of the commission be further amended by inserting the clause “disqualify candidates who evidently do not satisfy the requirements for the position he/she is contesting for as provided for in Sections 65, 66, 106, 107, 137, 177 and 182 of this constitution” immediately after clause (f) thereof.”
“The commission shall notify the political party of the disqualification of its candidate and the grounds for disqualification.”
Regarding party primaries, the commission asked for the amendment of Section 87 (9) of the Electoral Act, which would make it mandatory for all candidates to emerge through a free and fair democratic process.
It urged the National Assembly to approve its proposed amendment to enable it to disqualify a political party with flawed and undemocratic primaries from fielding candidates for any of the polls.
INEC said, “in order to further promote democracy, the emergence of candidates for elections should be on a democratic basis. A variant of the provision in Section 87 (9) of the Electoral Act (before amendment) should be reintroduced thus: ‘Where a political party fails to comply with the provision of the constitution of this Act in the conduct of its primaries or nomination of any candidate for election under this Act, the said candidate shall not be included in the list of nominated candidates for the election.”
INEC is also proposing that in a situation where an unqualified candidate indulges in an election, once a court establishes such an infraction, there shall be no fresh conduct of election for any affected seat, constituency or district.
The document said, “It suggested that subsection (6) of Section 31 be amended to make provision that where he Court finds that a candidate submitted by a political party did not meet the requirements for contesting the office, the court shall disqualify the candidate from contesting the election. Where, however, the person has been elected, the court shall order the person to vacate the office and the candidate with the second highest votes cast who has met the Constitutional requirements for the post shall be declared elected. This suggestion is to avoid the waste of public funds to repeat election consequent upon removal of disqualified candidates.”
The commission is also seeking a 10-year ban for electoral offenders or any person who commits party breaches.
The document further went on, “Any person convicted of an Electoral Offence (including registration offences, campaign finance breaches and breach of party finance provisions) should be disqualified for a period of 10 years from the date of conviction from contesting any election or holding any party position.”
“Thus, be it enacted the clause ‘within a period of 10 years before the date of the election, he has been convicted of an electoral offence by a court or tribunal’ and inserted immediately after each of paragraph (d) of Sections 66, 107, 137 and 182 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
However, to deal with electoral malpractice, INEC is proposing an Electoral Offences Commission and Electoral Offences Tribunal.
The Commission, INEC posits, will have powers to investigate and prosecute breaches of electoral provisions, which would lighten the load on the electoral body.
“It is not in doubt that electoral matters are by their nature sui generis, so also are breaches arising from the relevant electoral provisions. There is therefore the need to establish an Electoral Offences Tribunal to guarantee timely prosecution of electoral offenders,” INEC wrote.
On pre-election disputes, INEC asked that the National Assembly provide a timeline to resolve such and rid the electoral process of distractions.