INEC and Oguta constituency election Following the inconclusive Oguta constituency re-run election in the Imo State House of Assembly of June 29, 2013, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, has stated that the electoral body would not conduct elections in Imo State until the violence and unruly conduct of some politicians that led to the impasse is addressed. Jega, who announced this at the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room programme organised by Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), insisted that eight polling units in the area remained cancelled. The INEC boss also indicted officials of Imo State government and some members of the National Assembly for flouting the restriction order during the election. The disturbing aspect, Jega stressed, is that some of these politicians with security escorts are not even from Oguta constituency where the election held. Reports show that despite the appreciable number of security agents mobilized for the exercise, there were cases of violence as well as snatching of ballot papers and result sheets by thugs. Jega explained that the violence and unruly conduct of politicians necessitated cancellation of the election in the eight polling units, thereby making the election inconclusive. He also pointed out that Imo was a very bad election area, particularly Oguta, where election has never taken place. The trend there, he said, is that the power brokers in the area just return results, declaring whoever they like as the winner. He added that in 2011, INEC insisted that election must take place in Oguta, but the people ganged up and subverted the process. While we appreciate the challenges INEC faces in conducting elections in the country, especially the ones that trailed the recent inconclusive Oguta re-run, we do not think that stoppage of elections in Imo State until the issue of electoral violence is addressed, as Jega is insisting, is the solution. The duty of INEC is to conduct elections, including that of the Imo State House of Assembly. The electoral agency has no right whatsoever to abdicate its responsibility simply because some politicians have constituted themselves into a stumbling block for democracy. There are laws against electoral malpractices in the country. Those that flout the laws should be arrested and prosecuted. Nobody is above the law, including those politicians that Jega has indicted. Besides, electoral irregularities are matters which only the courts can pronounce on, and not INEC. We do not think that the electoral body has the powers to make pronouncements of this nature. INEC ought to have known the Oguta terrain and the behaviour of its power brokers very well based on the 2011 experience, and massed enough security agents to thwart their antics. INEC has no reason to decline from conducting the Oguta constituency poll. If one single constituency is problematic to INEC, how then would it conduct the 2015 general polls in the entire country? Let the electoral agency not hide under politicians’ infractions to defend its operational inefficiency. This defence is porous and the blacklisting of Imo is uncalled for. Singling Imo out for punishment on account of electoral violence is not proper because electoral violence is not peculiar to the state. It smacks of blackmail for INEC to say it will not hold further elections in Imo until violence is addressed. Violence has occurred during elections in other parts of the country. For instance, during the last gubernatorial election in Edo State where there were fears of violence, security was provided and the poll held. Let INEC do the same in Imo. If future elections in Oguta require more deployment of security agents, let it be done. Jega should be worried that Oguta constituency has had no representative in Imo State House of Assembly for two years now. It is not good that the people have been denied representation in the State Assembly. Let INEC ensure that the right of Oguta people to choose their representative in Imo House is respected. Such a choice should not be left to either politicians in the Imo State government or some members of the National Assembly. These politicians should allow the people choose their representative.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Jul 2013 16:48:13 +0000
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