By Luminous Jannamike
ABUJA – Some governors and former ministers yesterday requested the Federal Authorities to reform the Unbiased Nationwide Electoral Fee, INEC, forward of the 2027 common elections to revive public confidence in Nigeria’s democracy and strengthen electoral credibility.
They spoke at a panel dialogue hosted by the Athena Centre for Coverage and Management, with the theme ‘’Innovation in Electoral Know-how 2015 – 2025: Positive factors, Gaps, and the Street Forward,’’ in Abuja.
The occasion additionally featured the launch of the Athena Election Observatory, an initiative designed to observe and doc electoral reforms, improvements and governance developments in Nigeria and throughout Africa.
The high-level dialogue attracted teachers, policymakers, civil society leaders, and election consultants who gathered to look at how technological innovation had formed Nigeria’s elections during the last decade and to chart the way in which ahead, forward of 2027.
Among the many panelists have been Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo; Zamfara State governor, Dauda Lawal; former Minister of Inside, Rauf Aregbesola; and Nationwide Secretary of African Democratic Congress, ADC, and former Minister of Aviation Osita Chidoka, who can also be the Chancellor of the Athena Centre for Coverage and Management.
Representing INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu on the occasion was Prof. Abdullahi Abdu Zuru, INEC Nationwide Commissioner and Chairman of the Board of The Electoral Institute, BEI.
Talking on the credibility of elections, former Inside Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, criticised the present means of appointing INEC chairman and nationwide commissioners, describing it as a ‘grandstanding deceit.’
“It’s a grandstanding deceit for the principal beneficiary of electoral manipulation to nominate the INEC Chairman,” Aregbesola declared.
He argued that true independence of the fee may solely be achieved when political events with parliamentary illustration participated in nominating INEC’s management.
He mentioned: “Political events with at the very least 5 members within the Nationwide Meeting ought to be those to appoint INEC chairman and commissioners. That’s the solely means Nigerians can have faith within the course of.’’
Aregbesola’s blunt remarks drew murmurs of approval from some contributors, highlighting the burden of the long-standing debate on electoral autonomy.
On his half, Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, mentioned credible elections have been a mirrored image of governance high quality and institutional power, stressing that reforms should be targeted on deepening public belief and institutional independence.
“The crucial query is how we will make our establishments work. We’ve made some progress, however we nonetheless have an extended strategy to go in constructing belief within the course of,” he mentioned.
Soludo additionally maintained that electoral integrity required greater than expertise or legal guidelines, saying it relied on the conduct of those that run the method.
“It isn’t simply concerning the guidelines or the machines, it’s concerning the individuals. We will solely construct democracy on establishments that Nigerians belief,” he mentioned.
His feedback aligned with the session’s central theme, which examined the beneficial properties and gaps in electoral expertise between 2015 and 2025.
A number of audio system famous that whereas improvements such because the BVAS and IReV had improved transparency, the human component of integrity remained the most important take a look at. Zamfara State governor, Dauda Lawal, linked the success of democracy to respect for the rule of regulation and accountability in governance.
“We can not speak about democracy with out the rule of regulation. The rule of regulation is what ensures equity, justice and peace in society,” he mentioned.
The governor added that establishments should mirror integrity and accountability for Nigerians to think about elections, saying “if we would like individuals to belief the method, then we should make sure that our establishments are past manipulation.’’
Former Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, in his capability as Chancellor of the Athena Centre, mentioned Nigeria’s electoral challenges have been rooted in weak establishments and lack of public belief.
“Establishments, not people, make democracy work. When establishments are weak, the system turns into personalised and unaccountable,” he mentioned.
Chidoka, who additionally pressured that credible elections relied on transparency and equity, mentioned: “We should make sure the umpire isn’t seen as a participant. With out transparency, democracy turns into a shadow of itself.’’
Responding on behalf of the fee, Prof. Abdullahi Abdu Zuru, who represented INEC Chairman Prof. Yakubu, defended the electoral physique’s efficiency, insisting that the fee remained dedicated to bettering transparency and adopting new applied sciences for election administration.
“INEC has continued to reform its processes and construct transparency in all its operations,” Zuru mentioned, noting additional that the fee had established an Synthetic Intelligence unit to strengthen monitoring and information integrity, forward of future elections.
The publish Repair INEC earlier than 2027, Soludo, Dauda, Aregbesola, Chidoka inform FG appeared first on Vanguard Information.
