Ahead of the 2027 poll, stakeholders in the political terrain have warned against the hijack of the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by the ruling political elites in the country.
Prof. Adele Jinadu, in a keynote address during the conference of thought leaders on civic space, poverty, and elections in Nigeria held at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, claimed that he is privy to information of attempts by the ruling elites to “invade” INEC by appointing their lackeys to occupy top positions to do their bidding in the 2027 poll.
The Lagos State University don noted that the situation is further worsened by the fact that the National Assembly has allegedly become a willing tool to rubber-stamp partisan nominees from the APC executive arm to fill vacant seats in INEC.
Jinadu, who served as a commissioner in the defunct National Electoral Commission (NEC), called on civil society organisations (CSOs) and well-meaning Nigerians to wake up from their slumber and be vigilant to avert the impending compromise of the electoral system.
He said, “There is a tendency for the political class to make sure, as part of its state capture agenda, to control the electoral body by putting in place partisan supporters. In about 7 or 8 months’ time, we should be alert to that prospect.
“The party is ready to re-appoint party members. The current INEC would either have served their two terms and are therefore not eligible to be reappointed. Or for those who only served one term, that will also provide an opportunity for the ruling party not to reappoint them, because the power of reappointment is the power of removal, and replace them with party sympathisers.
“So that possibility is there. And I think we need to be vigilant and prevent that from happening, because if you look at our history, the 1964–65 federal elections put us on the precipice because there was a deliberate attempt to tamper with and influence the federal electoral culture at the time to the extent that three or four members of the coalition had to resign.
“So what I’m simply saying is that we should avoid a situation where we put partisan politicians in INEC. The only way we can prevent that is to make sure that if and when that happens, there should be massive protests against it. It’s not a matter of going to the courts. It’s not a matter of the list going to the National Assembly in the morning and then in the afternoon, the names have been compiled.”
Director of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, called on the electorate to prevent their votes from being stolen at the poll.
He remarked that it is unfortunate that the political class have taken the electorate for granted in spite of amendments to the Electoral Acts since the return to democratic rule in 1999.
The Secretary General of WRAPA, Hajiya Saudatu Mahdi, decried the marginalisation of women, youths, persons with disability, and other vulnerable groups from the governance of the country.
In his welcome address, the Executive Director of the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy & Development (Centre LSD), Monday Osasah, said the goal of the conference is to enhance democratic governance, social protection, and electoral integrity in Nigeria.
“We believe that by working together, we can build a more inclusive, transparent, and accountable democracy that truly serves the needs of all Nigerians.
“This project is timely, given the current state of our democracy. We have seen the constriction of civic space, widespread poverty, and electoral malpractices that hinder our nation’s development. However, we also see opportunities for reform and positive change.”
