Re-appointed chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu, has been counseled to learn from Ghana and the United States’ electoral bodies on how to conduct free, fair, transparent, and credible general election.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gave the advice to Yakubu, and asked him to ensure he conducted credible elections in 2023.
The advice was contained in a statement the party’s spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan issued on Wednesday.
It was in response to the Tuesday Senate confirmation of the reappointment of Yakubu as INEC chairman by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The PDP asked Yakubu not to recourse to excuses but to use the more than two years ahead of the 2023 general election to rejig Nigeria’s electoral commission and work out legislations and operational rules that will guarantee a free, credible, and all-inclusive electoral process.
It said Yakubu could examine and learn how the Ghana electoral commission is making more room for a more all-inclusive electoral process by kick-starting a special voting system to enable personnel of critical service providers to cast their ballots days ahead of the country’s December 7, election date.
“The PDP also advised the INEC chairman to study how the United States credibly conducted a keenly contested 2020 Presidential election without recourse to government influence and use of security to suppress the wishes of citizens as expressed at the polling units.
“The PDP urges the INEC chairman to engage political stakeholders for legislations, rules and field procedures, so as to curb violence, ensure the security of electoral materials and guarantee the safety of voters.
“It is therefore instructive to restate that with the new appointment, Prof Yakubu has been given an ample time and opportunity to redeem the image of the commission and give our nation a credible election that will be devoid of the failures, disappointments, miscarriages and litigations that characterized his first five years tenure.
“Our party urges the reappointed INEC chairman to note that the 2023 general election will hugely impact on the fate of over 200 million Nigerians. As such, he must ensure that the nation does not go down in his hands,” the statement read in part.
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