<\/p>\n
By GeorgeMgbeleke<\/p>\n
The Senate on Thursday at a committee of the Whole screen and confirm the appointment of Professor Joash Amupitan as National Chairman, Independent National ElectoralCommission((INEC).<\/p>\n
Prof Amupitan entered the Senate Chamber at 12:50 p.m. after a motion by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), to suspend Order 12 and allow the nominee into the chamber and was grilled for about three hour having fielded questions from majority of senators at the plenary on Thursday.
\nHaving been given the floor to answer questions from lawmakers, INEC Chairman-Elect gave these assurances:<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. President, distinguished senators, the concern raised by Senator Sita is indeed a major one \u2014 and it reflects the worry of many Nigerians. One of the first things we must do at the Commission is to establish a credible internal mechanism to monitor the conduct and behavior of officials.<\/p>\n
“I am taking this position on trust, and those who will work with me must also recognize that they are holding the trust of the Nigerian people. To maintain integrity, I intend to set up an Ethics and Compliance Committee within INEC to audit reported cases of misconduct.<\/p>\n
“There have been numerous reports of electoral malpractice in the past, some of which were never properly addressed. In some instances \u2014 such as in Bayelsa and Adamawa States \u2014 a few offenders were prosecuted and even convicted. We intend to follow through on such cases to ensure accountability.”<\/p>\n
Continuning he said, “I believe there is a need for legislative support, and we will collaborate with the National Assembly to strengthen the legal framework. For instance, there is an urgent need for an Electoral Offences Commission that can effectively investigate and prosecute electoral crimes. The current system lacks sufficient capacity for that.<\/p>\n
“We plan to develop a system that can detect, investigate, and prosecute misconduct \u2014 supported by forensic methods when necessary \u2014 and strengthen INEC\u2019s internal disciplinary process to ensure that all those involved in wrongdoing are brought to justice.<\/p>\n
“We may also introduce a whistleblower policy within INEC to encourage people to report malpractices without fear of victimization.”<\/p>\n
On the issue of security and logistics, Prof said ” I recognize that these are major challenges due to the size and diversity of our country. We will work closely with the Joint Committee on Election Security to enhance protection of materials, personnel, and voters \u2014 especially in high-risk areas.<\/p>\n
“We will also invest more in logistics and technology to ensure that every part of Nigeria is adequately reached. If necessary, we can deploy innovations \u2014 such as drones and other secure means \u2014 to guarantee that election materials reach their destinations. No voter will be left behind. That will be our guiding principle.<\/p>\n
“In terms of voter and civic education, INEC will carry out its mandate under Section 2 of the Act more aggressively. We will embark on extensive civic and voter education campaigns to enlighten Nigerians about their rights and responsibilities. This will include capacity-building not only for INEC staff but also for all election stakeholders \u2014 political parties, their members, civil society groups, and the electorate at large.”<\/p>\n
On the issue of court decisions and technological systems, INEC Chairman-Elect noted, “there has been confusion over certain innovations introduced by INEC, such as the electronic collation system.<\/p>\n
“The Supreme Court has clarified some of these matters. When we assume office, we will assess the infrastructure on ground, review the technology, and adopt the best approach that enhances transparency and credibility in elections.<\/p>\n
“Regarding timelines and inconsistencies in the Electoral Act, I acknowledge that some provisions contradict each other. We will work to harmonize these timelines to remove ambiguity. A clear and consistent electoral timetable will help to build public confidence and reduce post-election disputes.<\/p>\n
“Our ultimate goal is to make elections so credible that even the loser will be able to congratulate the winner in good faith \u2014 just as a judge delivers judgment and both sides accept it as fair and just.”<\/p>\n
On financial prudence, as raised by Distinguished Senator Yeri, he said,” I assure this chamber that the laws already enacted by the National Assembly \u2014 particularly the Public Procurement Act and the Finance Act \u2014 will be strictly adhered to. INEC funds will be used only for the purposes for which they are appropriated, and we will seek ways to cut costs where possible without compromising efficiency.<\/p>\n
“In summary, our approach will be guided by integrity, accountability, security, efficiency, and education \u2014 to ensure that elections in Nigeria truly reflect the will of the people.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By GeorgeMgbeleke The Senate on Thursday at a committee of the Whole screen and confirm the appointment of Professor Joash Amupitan as National Chairman, Independent National ElectoralCommission((INEC). Prof Amupitan entered the Senate Chamber at 12:50 p.m. after a motion by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), to suspend Order 12 and allow […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,4,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion","category-politics","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7991"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7991\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7996,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7991\/revisions\/7996"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}