INEC urges CSOs to scrutinize political parties, local govt elections

Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has called on Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to expand their oversight to include the activities of Political Parties and State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs) to strengthen Nigeria’s democratic process.

During a meeting with the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room on September 4, 2024, Prof. Yakubu praised CSOs for their role in improving elections but emphasized the need for broader scrutiny.

He declared:  “No matter what INEC does, if other actors are not ready to play by the rules or in sync, we’ll continue to face challenges”.

Highlighting some of the areas where adjustments by stakeholders in the electoral process are necessary, the INEC Chairman said: “The civil society has been instrumental to the positive changes we are seeing. Remember, most of the improvements that you see in the conduct of elections are as a result of the activism of civil society. But sometimes, the civil society is quiet about other (types of) elections.”

He noted that while INEC conducts national elections, the integrity of these elections often hinges on the quality of party primaries and local government elections overseen by SIECs.

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“Take the conduct of party primaries for instance. Political parties conduct primary elections (and) INEC conducts secondary elections. So, the most important process is actually the primaries conducted by political parties.  It is the candidates they present that we put on the ballot. Citizens can only choose from the candidates presented by political parties.”

Highlighting the importance of credible primaries, he stressed that flawed processes at this stage limit voters’ choices.

He also urged CSOs to pay more attention to local government elections, where SIECs often declare ruling party candidates as winners without much scrutiny from civil society.

Prof. Yakubu’s call comes as CSOs continue to push for broader democratic engagement, including mobilizing voters and advocating for peaceful elections.

“Elections are conducted at the local government level by the SIECs and they declare all the candidates of the ruling party winners. Yet, we don’t hear anything from civil society.

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“At INEC, we appreciate constructive criticisms. It is an ingredient for change. But we want all the components of elections to be alright. We cannot have one component going right and another going another way.”

The Team Leader, Yau, in his remarks, noted that members of the Civil Society Situation Room share a common interest with INEC in the area of consolidating democracy and the conduct of elections in Nigeria.

He said the coalition members had been mobilising citizens for Permanent Voter Card (PVC) collection and engaging in campaigns aimed at achieving peaceful polls in Edo state. He affirmed that the group is also imploring political parties to play by the rules and tell their members not to undermine the electoral process.

The INEC Chairman was joined by National Commissioners, the Secretary to the Commission, Mrs. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, and other senior management members of the Commission to receive the delegation.