The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the States Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) have decried the refusal of some State Governors to conduct elections into the Local Government Areas.
Consequently, they have jointly called on the reluctant states to urgently do so in the interest of promoting democracy.
Rising from a two-day INEC/SIECS experience sharing conference on best practices in election management held in Kaduna, they noted that 11 states are yet to conduct LGAs elections.
The meeting aimed at sharing experiences on international best practices, assess challenges and reinforce commitment to credible elections in Nigeria; and share with SIECs the overall plans and preparations of INEC for the 2015 General Elections.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting on Friday, they “Strongly urge States that have not conducted LGA elections and are under various caretaker committees to urgently do so without further delay.
“The conduct of free, fair and credible elections at national as well as local government levels is indispensable to the expansion and deepening of Nigeria’s democratic experience;
“That eleven (11) states namely: Abia, Bauchi, Borno, Delta, Ekiti, Imo, Kano, Katsina, Ondo, Osun and Oyo have, disappointingly, failed to conduct local council elections and that the LGAs in these states are either under caretaker committees or, in one case (Delta), under the Head of Personnel Management, contrary to the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
“State governments to create enabling conditions that can allow SIECs to operate professionally and creditably; and they urged political parties to begin extensive civic and voter education campaigns to compliment the work of SIECs and INEC.
“That the operational and financial independence of SIECs is key to the conduct of free, fair and credible local government and should be constitutionally guaranteed;
“That INEC’s preparations for the 2015 general elections particularly in areas such as the
Election Project Plan, Election Management System, Constituency Delimitation, continuous voter registration and voter education amongst many others are impressive; and
“ That all political parties should intensify civic and voter education as part of their
Responsibilities as mobilizers of voters and aggregators of opinions.
“To explore more avenues of cooperation between SIECs and INEC in addressing the challenges arising from the electoral and political processes,” Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, Director, Voter Education and Publicity at INEC stated.
