A GROUP, the Coalition of Democrats for Electoral Reform (CODER), yesterday alerted the nation to major challenges that may mar next month’s polls.
The elections begin on Saturday, with the National Assembly polls.
In a statement, entitled: Lest Nigerians Forget, by its National Coordinator, Ayo Opadokun, CODER pointed out the lapses and suggested the way out.
The statement reads: “…CODER wishes to remind Nigerians that in spite of spirited efforts made by CODER and other stakeholders, including civil society organisations and the international community to ensure free, fair and transparent elections, it is sad to state that there is no visibly significant changes in the run-up to the next elections that could probably bring about a radical turn-around of the conduct of our elections.
“For example, the composition of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) remains a partisan exercise in which the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the presidential office generally appointed the electoral umpire. In other words, the PDP is both a competitor and a player but also a referee of the next electoral soccer match in April 2011.
“Second, the digitalised voters’ register, for which about N90 billion has been invested, has turned out to be almost a colossal failure. This is because the litmus test, which the data from the Direct Data Capture (DDC) machine should provide through the Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) with the servers, has been poorly exercised. From all accounts, only Cross River State subjected its raw data registration to AFIS. This test should have eliminated all double or multiple registration. The less than one million double registration that INEC announced appears to be much more a face-saving mechanism.
“The consequence is a statistical ambiguity whereby states with 1.5 million registration at the end of the exercise were eventually declared to have 2.3 million people eligible for registration. INEC’s 73 million registered voters’ figure is difficult to statistically explain.
“Third, many Resident Electoral Officers, who were indicted one way or the other in both 2003 and 2007 unprecedented rigging activities, still remain in their duty posts. There is no doubt that they have been compensated for helping to foist irresponsible and irresponsive people in office. Along with that is that Nigerian civil service remains in charge of INEC’s bureaucracy therefore conferring undue advantage on PDP that is the ruling party.
“Fourth, the PDP-dominated National Assembly selfishly tailor-made the 2010 Electoral Act to work for their strategic advantage: they rejected the critical recommendations of the Justice Muhammadu Uwais’ Electoral Panel generally and with particular reference to the establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission. They voted for a continuation of the culture of impunity that has characterised the attitude of the state to all manner of electoral offences.”
It also pointed out some other electoral challenges as follows:
“Apart from the fact that Prof. Jega and one or two others have been appointed into INEC as against the wise recommendations of Uwais Panel, INEC remains a structural deformity that cannot inspire confidence nor serve the commonwealth interest.
“That at the end of April elections it should not surprise the critical minds that these elections are most unlikely to provide any remarkable positive response to the National Question. We cannot do our things the same way all over and then expect a different result.
“Furthermore, that even though the fundamental rights of the citizens to freely elect those who will govern them at scheduled periodical times must be respected at all times, the most urgent task that needs radical transformation is the Nigerian political system, which permits a motley crowd of rulers at the centre to appropriate the state and its resources to themselves and their fellow collaborators in such a manner as to stultify her growth and development till date.”
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Electoral lapses may mar polls, says CODER