By Wale Odunsi The 2023 general elections are now over with the completion of the April 15 supplementary elections in 2,660 polling ...
By Wale Odunsi
The 2023 general elections are now over with the completion
of the April 15 supplementary elections in 2,660 polling units (PUs) across
Nigeria.
A rerun of governorship, State Assembly, senatorial and
House of Representatives elections took place in 185 Local Government Areas in
over 20 states following violence, cancelled votes, late arrival of materials,
etc.
The States include Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Edo,
Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Niger, Ogun,
Oyo, Rivers, Taraba, Sokoto, Yobe and Zamfara.
Earlier, the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) conducted presidential and National Assembly elections on February 25,
while state elections were held on March 18, one week after the original date.
INEC remains in the eye of the storm as a cross-section of
Nigerians maintain it contributed to the controversial outcome of the
presidential election and that of governorship in some states.
They contend that the malfunction of the Bimodal Voter
Accreditation System (BVAS) and the failure to timely update the INEC Result
Viewing Portal (IReV) was a breach.
Professor Mahmood Yakubu had promised the results would be
uploaded in real-time as it was during the July 16 gubernatorial election in
Osun.
At a media briefing in November 2022, the INEC chairman
dismissed reports that the commission was planning to jettison transmission
from PUs.
“The commission will upload polling unit level results and
citizens will have access to those results in real-time. This innovation was
introduced by the commission, the commission cannot undermine itself,” he
noted.
But that did not happen in its entirety, especially during
the presidential contest, where results were uploaded even after Bola Tinubu of
the All Progressives Congress (APC) was declared winner on March 1.
On February 27, a report by the International Republican
Institute (IRI) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI) joint observation
mission declared that INEC lacked transparency.
Days later, FixPolitics, a movement led by a former
Minister, Oby Ezekwesili, said the disputed results have made the populace to
resent INEC, question the integrity of the ballot and the process.
In a chat with DAILY POST, a citizen close to the commission
revealed the efforts by the IT department to keep the IReV portal up while the
presidential election was going on.
“The results were uploaded without problems until late
afternoon when continuous glitches were observed. INEC technicians, who were
also at the national collation centre in Abuja, commenced work on the site.
“That took about two hours but by then, Nigerians, officers
on the field and agents were understandably in a panic mode. If you remember,
the site came up again and more results were uploaded.
“I agree that INEC should have handled communication better.
I also believe they wanted to deliver the best election but you cannot rule out
human errors, questionable staff, politicians and security personnel,” he said.
The source also spoke on BVAS and the transfer of ex-INEC
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Director, Chidi Nwafor to Enugu
as the Administrative Secretary before the election.
“Those linking Chidi and BVAS are not informed; it was not a
one-man invention. He and the ICT team developed the system, so other engineers
know everything about it.
“The good thing is that the contents of BVAS are safe and
secure, meaning a number of aggrieved candidates will be able to successfully
prove their cases in court.”
In his contribution, a legal practitioner, Festus Ogun told
DAILY POST that the general elections “leave quite a lot to be desired”.
“As an election lawyer and a citizen, the level of
inefficiencies in the conduct is unprecedented. INEC under-delivered and didn’t
meet the expectations of Nigerians.
“Clearly, as a result of the failure on the part of INEC to
conduct a free, fair, transparent and credible election, the duty has shifted
to our tribunals,” the rights activist added.
But Nigerians keeping track are concerned about the seeming
delay at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) and the State
Election Petition Tribunals who can remove elected candidates even after
inauguration.
According to the Electoral Act, 2022, Section 132 (7) &
(8), petitions must be filed within 21 days after declaration of results; the
tribunals are to deliver judgments within six months from the petition date.
At the Court of Appeal in Abuja, the PEPT secretariat, five
standard bearers and their parties have filed separate petitions against Tinubu
and the APC.
They are Nnadi Osita, Action Peoples Party (APP); Solomon
Okangbuan, Action Alliance (AA); Chichi Ojei, Allied Peoples Movement (APM);
Peter Obi, Labour Party (LP), and Atiku Abubakar, Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP).
The issues raised border on alleged exclusion of
Okanigbuan’s name on the ballot, Tinubu’s education background, alleged age
falsification and drug trafficking indictment in the United States of America.
Others are Section 134 of the 1999 Constitution (25 percent
of votes in the FCT); a candidate standing for presidential election but also
earlier a senatorial candidate (VP-elect Kashim Shettima). Shettima replaced
the placeholder, Kabiru Masari.
The President-elect, the ruling party, and INEC have
responded to all arguments, while the nation and the international community
await the tribunal to start day-to-day hearing.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President,
Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), legal luminary, Femi Falana (SAN), parties and
stakeholders have called for a live broadcast of the proceedings.
In his opinion, Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) stated that the
presidential tribunal could conclude hearings within seven days if the court
systems are proactive.
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