ABUJA – A Civil Society Organization, CSO, and election observer, Yiaga Africa, yesterday, kicked against calls for the scrapping of State Independent Electoral Commissions, SIECs, from Nigeria’s electoral system.
He said: “Yiaga Africa has observed increasing calls for the abolition of State Independent Electoral Commissions and the transfer of the responsibility of conducting local government elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission . “In 2022, the National Assembly introduced a provision in the 2022 Electoral Act to regulate the procedure for LGA elections in a bid to salvage the integrity of local government elections.
“The commission is perpetually occupied throughout the electoral cycle with registration and regulation of political parties, voter registration, production of election materials and guidelines, and candidate nomination. Adding the responsibility of conducting local government elections would further strain the Commission, potentially leading to administrative inefficiencies and reduced effectiveness in managing electoral processes.
He maintained that, “The proposal fails to address the underlying causes of ‘electoral coronation’ masquerading as elections at the local level.