INEC Chair reacts to calls for commission to conduct LG poll
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says only the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), where the commission conducts council poll, has interrupted local government council election and administration.
Reacting to calls from some quarters that INEC should be saddled with the responsibility of conducting local government elections in Nigeria, Yakubu said that the matter was however a constitutional matter.
According to him, the same section of the constitution that establishes INEC also establishes the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC).
“So, it is good for people to do advocacy but the constitution has to be amended for that to happen.
“But right now, INEC conducts local government election in the Federal Capital Territory for six state constituencies, six area council chairmen and 62 councillors.
“This is the only part of the country where there is regularity in the conduct of council elections.
“It is the only place where there has never been a caretaker committee (running local government) and where no one political party has ever won in all the six area councils.
“So, we are encouraged by what we have done, but as for taking over the state elections, the constitution has to be amended, and we are not there yet.”
Several politicians and analysts have been calling on the National Assembly to scrap SIECs in the ongoing process of amending the 1999 Constitution.
The advocates are calling on the National Assembly to transfer the power to conduct local government elections to INEC, for better outcomes.
The advocates argued that state governments exert influence on their respective electoral bodies and manipulate election results to favour the party in power.
Similarly, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, had in March advocated scrapping SIECs.
Fagbemi said the SIEC functions should be transferred to INEC to ensure independence and transparency in the outcome of local government elections.
Fagbemi had recently, in a suit, asked the Supreme Court to void the alleged misconduct of 36 states in withholding local government funds.
Meanwhile, the attorney-general had also asked the Supreme Court to stop the 36 state governments from disbandment of elected local government councils and replacing them with caretaker committees.
Fagbemi said scrapping state electoral commissions would allow democracy to take its roots in the local governments through a robust constitutional amendment.
He said doing so would remove all encumbrances hindering the development of local governments and their ability to fulfill their constitutionally recognised functions.
