A coalition of civil society groups, under the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, paid a courtesy visit to the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja on Wednesday. During this visit, the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, seized the opportunity to highlight the critical role civil society organizations (CSOs) play in the electoral process and democracy in Nigeria.
Prof. Yakubu, who welcomed the delegation, praised the CSOs for their contributions to the improvement of Nigeria’s democratic processes. He noted that many of the positive changes that have been witnessed in the conduct of elections are the result of sustained civil society activism. However, despite these gains, the INEC Chairman emphasized that more needs to be done by these organizations, particularly in scrutinizing the activities of political parties and State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs).
In his words, “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.” He called on civil society to shift its focus beyond just the activities of INEC and take a more active role in monitoring how political parties and SIECs conduct their own elections. The Chairman pointed out that while civil society has been vocal in advocating for better elections at the federal and state levels, there seems to be a level of silence when it comes to local government elections conducted by SIECs. These elections, according to him, are crucial, yet they are often marked by irregularities that go unchallenged by civil society.
“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 the civil society,” Yakubu said. He stressed that local government elections, just like the national elections, are a key part of the democratic process and must be conducted fairly. However, SIECs, which are responsible for conducting these elections, often fail to adhere to proper electoral guidelines, leading to outcomes where candidates from the ruling party win in most, if not all, local government areas.
According to Prof. Yakubu, this issue of flawed elections at the local government level has a ripple effect on the overall democratic process. He stated that for Nigeria to achieve true democracy, all components of the election process need to be scrutinized equally. “We cannot have one component going right and another going another way,” he said, underscoring the need for civil society to extend its monitoring and activism to every aspect of the electoral system.
Prof. Yakubu also highlighted the critical role of political party primaries in shaping the electoral process. He explained that while INEC is responsible for conducting the general elections, it is the political parties that are in charge of conducting primary elections to select their candidates. These primary elections, according to him, are extremely important because they determine the pool of candidates from which the electorate will ultimately choose. He elaborated, “Political parties conduct primary elections (and) INEC conducts secondary elections. So, the most important process is actually the primaries conducted by political parties.”
Yakubu expressed concern that when party primaries are flawed, it has a direct impact on the general elections. Since the public only gets to choose from candidates who have emerged from the party primaries, if these primaries are not conducted fairly, the public may end up with subpar candidates on the ballot. He called on civil society organizations to pay more attention to how political parties conduct their primaries and to hold them accountable when these processes are not transparent or fair.
He noted that while civil society has been instrumental in pushing for reforms in the conduct of general elections, it should not neglect other important elections such as party primaries and local government elections. By scrutinizing these aspects of the electoral process, CSOs can help to ensure that the entire democratic system functions more effectively.
In his remarks, the convener of the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, Yinusa Z Ya’u, reiterated the coalition’s commitment to working with INEC to improve Nigeria’s electoral system. He emphasized that the civil society community shares a common interest with INEC in ensuring free, fair, and credible elections. Ya’u noted that one of the major areas of focus for the coalition has been mobilizing citizens to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and encouraging political parties to play by the rules during elections.
Ya’u pointed out that the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room has also been working to promote peaceful elections in states like Edo, where elections are fast approaching. He stated that the coalition has been actively involved in campaigns aimed at ensuring that political parties do not engage in activities that undermine the integrity of the electoral process.
He acknowledged the efforts of INEC in making improvements in the conduct of elections and assured the Commission of continued support from the civil society community. Ya’u highlighted that the role of civil society is not just to criticize but also to work collaboratively with INEC and other stakeholders to ensure that democracy is strengthened at all levels.
The courtesy visit provided an opportunity for both INEC and the civil society organizations to discuss how they can work together to tackle the challenges facing Nigeria’s electoral system. Prof. Yakubu was joined by several National Commissioners, the Secretary to the Commission, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, and other senior management staff to receive the delegation. The presence of key figures in INEC underscored the importance the Commission places on its relationship with civil society and its openness to constructive criticism and collaboration.
