…Okoye, Oyekanmi keep mum
A former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, on Wednesday, raised doubts about the ability of the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct a transparent election in 2023.
While using the recent developments in Akwa Ibom and Yobe State chapters of the All Progressives Congress, where aspirants who have not participated in a primary allegedly became candidates of the party as reference points.
He said INEC was already bringing itself to disrepute, adding that there seemed to be two INECs in Nigeria.
Several calls, texts and WhatsApp messages to INEC National Commissioner and Chairman (Information and Voter Education Committee), Festus Okoye, and the Chief Press Secretary to its chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, for reaction were not replied.
Both the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, and the former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, were contesting for Yobe North and Akwa Ibom North-West senatorial seats respectively.
Odinkalu wondered whether INEC was willing to respect and observe the Electoral Act under which it should operate or just willing to just be truthful to itself and whether the current chairman of INEC could be trusted to supervise credible elections.
The activist bared his mind while featuring on ‘Kakaaki,’ a political programme on Africa Independent Television, monitored in Abuja.
He said, “It seems to me there are two INECs, the Abuja INEC Headquarters and the INEC Commissioners in different states battling with the reality and I’m not sure Abuja INEC is giving them the support that they need.
“I don’t see that INEC is necessarily behaving itself at the Headquarters in a way, like Akwa Ibom for instance or Yobe North senatorial zone, where the current President of the Senate (Ahmad Lawan) is an issue. That really is my point. Is INEC willing to respect and observe the Electoral Act under which it should operate and is INEC willing to just be truthful to itself?
“One, where a candidate or an aspirant has not participated in the primary process or the candidate who has emerged from primary did not withdraw, then it seems to me that a combined reading of Sections 29/84 of the Electoral Act will oblige INEC to not agree to put forward a person who has not participated in a primary to become a candidate of a party
“Now, we know that my brother, Godswill Akpabio, ran for the Presidency, the ticket of his party. We know that the Senate President ran for the ticket of his party for the presidential primary, which took place after the senatorial primary. How is it possible that we are even engaging the conversation as to whether Akpabio and Lawan should be candidates for their parties in the senatorial elections because they were unavailable?
“They couldn’t have run for those primaries. Why are we here? INEC is bringing itself into utter disrepute. And the question on whether INEC under this particular chairman can supervise independent and credible elections is up for discussion if we cannot preserve basic truths and facts; how can the current chairman of INEC be trusted to supervise credible elections?
“Surely, we cannot have this conversation. Akpabio could not have participated in the senatorial primary. Ahmad Lawan could not have participated in the senatorial primary. That should be the end of the matter. But we have not had the chairperson of INEC weigh in truthfully on the matter. Why is he chairperson of INEC if he cannot just be straightforward about things? And then he leaves the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Akwa Ibom or the REC in Yobe to take the bullet? I think that’s just irresponsible.”
On whether INEC has the power to reject candidates, Odinkalu cited Section 84(18) of the law which, he said, was clear.
According to him, the Section explained that, “if a party puts forward a person who has not participated in lawful primaries, the person cannot go forward to the list of candidates.”
Odinkalu queried, “Who’s responsible for the list of candidates under the Electoral Act? INEC. So INEC has very clear powers on that. That is not an issue at all. I mean I had a Commissioner of INEC whom I don’t believe he’s reading the Electoral Act and don’t blame him on that, he’s not a lawyer, he’s a journalist, and the lawyers in INEC should put him right.
“INEC’s Spokesperson, Festus Okoye, was the chairperson of the Nigerian Bar Association in Kaduna. Somebody should tell Commissioner Haruna that he’s simply backing up the wrong tree.”
The PUNCH got a copy of the list of the APC candidates whose primaries were not monitored by Akwa Ibom State INEC office but uploaded by the party to the commission’s headquarters in Abuja and published.
Akwa Ibom State has three Senatorial Districts and 10 House of Representatives constituency slots.
The documents had the following: Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District (Ukpong Nkangha); Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District (No candidate’s name was published) and Akwa Ibom South Senatorial District (Udo Denis).
The APC also sent 10 names of the House of Representatives in Akwa Ibom State.
They are Abak/Etim Ekpo/Ika (Jimbo Inemesit Clement); Itu/Ibiono Ibom (Udeme Mfoon); Etinan/Nsit Ibium/Nsit Ibom (Oho Glory Ekpo); Eket/Ona/Esit Eket/Obeno (Eyibo Eseme Sunday) and Ikot Abasi/Mkpat Enin/eastern Obolo (Ntuk Ernest Emmanuel).
Others are Ukanafun/Orukanam (Ibritim Freedom); Uyo/Uruan/Nsit Atai/Ibesikpo (Okokon Nsikak Etim); Ikot Ekpene/Essien Udim/Obot Akara (Umoh Patrick Patrick); Oron/ Mbo/Okobo/Uruefun/Uk (Edumoh Robinson Effiong) and Uyo/Uruan/Nsit Atai/Ibesikpo/Asutan (No name published).
But in its reaction to the reported substitution of candidates’ names, a senior official in INEC had told the aggrieved aspirants to proceed to court and seek redress.
He said, “There is no institution that has the power to substitute political party. In terms of selecting their candidate, it is not an INEC issue; the only thing is that political parties have to follow this law and that is why INEC has to be there to monitor and confirm that primaries held and people contested. But in the end, the authority to submit list of candidates is the party not INEC.”
Asked what happens in a situation where INEC would submit a name of a candidate whose primary the commission had not supervised, he said, “This is not an issue because those who feel aggrieved will go to court, and the court is the final authority to determine the validity of candidate.
“If there is a primary that INEC monitored and the one that INEC did not monitor and submit the name from the primary that was not monitored by INEC, it is left for the candidate that was monitored by INEC to go to court to say, ‘I am the valid person nominated, my party didn’t nominate me.’
“Therefore, the court should adjudicate. It is at that point the court will ask INEC to bring a report of the primary. It is not the business of INEC, but that of the candidate that is cheated to go to court, that is the law.
“INEC shouldn’t be involved in the internal politics of parties, it is only when the court of law is trying to find out who is the authentic candidate that they will say, ‘INEC, you were there to monitor can we see your report?’
“INEC has no role to play because they cannot take over the primary function of political parties to forward their list to INEC.”
