Ahead of next year’s general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned political parties to desist from what it described as pre-emptive campaign tendencies. The commission particularly pointed a finger at the subtle, but illegal, electioneering that has characterised the forthcoming governorship polls in Ekiti and Osun states, as well as other upcoming elections. It admonished political parties to adhere strictly to campaign timelines in order to foreclose unnecessary tension in the country. The chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega, said such hastiness violates the provision of section 99(1) of the Electoral Act 2010 on the time when campaigns can be legally conducted.

“The notices we issued recently on the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states, as well as the 2015 elections, indicate the timelines for campaigns, based on legal provisions. Premature electioneering will not only heat up the polity unnecessarily, it will also be breaking established laws of this country,” the INEC boss said.

Beyond political rallies, INEC needs to properly define what constitutes pre-emptive electioneering. Nigerians, particularly politicians, need to know what could categorically pass as a breach of the poll timeline. Blanket condemnation of all electoral activities as pre-emptive may not be realistic as there is a thin line between what is legal and illegal in these matters. This is critical because politicians could adopt incredulous strategies that could undermine INEC’s directive and still go scot free without the umpire able to hold them to account.

We call on politicians to conduct themselves in accordance with the stipulations of the electoral timetable. It does not even require reiteration by INEC for political parties and their members to know that it is an electoral offence to embark on political rallies before the period stipulated for such activities. This provision has always been a key constituent of all the country’s electoral laws promulgated by the Acts of the National Assembly. In other words, it is not a new rule, and no politician can claim ignorance of it. The consequence of contravening the order against pre-emptive electioneering is that it has the capacity and inclination to create needless and distractive manifestations in the polity. This could lead to instability and subsequent abortion of the entire exercise. Politicians must be conscious of these possibilities especially in our fragile political environment.

INEC should, however, not allow worries about politicians’ campaign gimmicks to bog it down. It should concentrate on ensuring the conduct of free and fair elections as much as possible in the upcoming polls. It is good to guarantee compliance with statutory electoral guidelines, but greater challenges lie ahead. They include the need to establish voter confidence in the commission and ensure the conduct of credible polls. All other expectations and obligations are tangential to the overall outcome of elections. INEC should not spread itself and its resources thin on marginal issues. As far as Nigerians are concerned, all those other details should be managed by INEC in a way that would not distract its attention from its main responsibility.

If political parties or their members have any reservations with regard to the timetable and the exigencies of electioneering, they should articulate them and forward the same to INEC for a possible review. We do not believe that lifting the campaign embargo three months to polls is enough for civic and voter education by political parties, its subscribers and candidates.

More time should have been given for campaigns, which should be regulated. Even with the ban and reaffirmation of it by the commission, there is no guarantee that parties, politicians and aspirants will not evolve nondescript measures to beat the directive.

However, until there is a change in the timelines and modalities for all the forthcoming elections, we implore all parties and their members to abide by the existing electoral laws and comport themselves in a responsible and dignified manner to forestall truncation of our steady democratic march. Campaigns are not the ultimate issues in elections, but the character, integrity and pedigree of the prospective public office holder. No amount of electioneering can change the perception of a man of questionable antecedents. Let all politicians with the law in the interest of the country and their own future.

-Sun

Posted by admin on Feb 15 2014. Filed under Headlines, INEC Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry