The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has assured the European Union, EU, that while some of its recommendations after the 2023 general election have been implemented, others are being attended to by the various stakeholders affected.
Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu spoke at a meeting with the European Union, EU, Election Observation Follow-up Mission to Nigeria in Abuja on Thursday.
The EU Election Observation Follow-up Mission was in Abuja on Thursday, led by its Head and member of the European Parliament, Mr Barry Andrews
Also in attendance was the EU Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Gautier Mignot, the Team Lead and other Experts on the Follow-up Mission.
The meeting was basically to monitor the implementation of the EU recommendations half way between the last and the forthcoming general election.
Yakubu noted that of the 30 recommendations made by the the EU EOM in 2019, 11 were specifically addressed to INEC.
He said that three of the recommendations were identified as priority while 8 were categorised as general.
In 2023 according to the INEC boss, 23 recommendations were made by EU/EOM out of which 8 (34.8%) require action by the Commission of which only one recommendation was listed as priority.
He said that the remaining 15 (65.2%) recommendations, of which five were categorised as priority, require action by other entities in the executive, legislature and the judiciary as well as political parties and multiple stakeholders such as civil society organisations, the media and professional bodies.
“The Commission has carefully considered all the 8 recommendations specifically addressed to us in your report,” he said.
“Action has been taken on aspects of the recommendations that only require administrative action to implement.
“Similarly, action is being taken on cross-cutting recommendations that require collective action between INEC and other bodies and stakeholders while waiting for the conclusion of the ongoing legal review by the National Assembly on the recommendations that require legislative intervention.
“To this end, the Commission has prepared a detailed response to each one of your direct observations which we shared with you at this meeting. If time permits, we can go over each of the recommendations.
“I must also add that your recommendations, along with similar reports from other national and international election observers, were the subject of wide-ranging consultations with critical institutions and stakeholders during our own review of the 2023 General Election.
“The review report contains 142 recommendations for electoral reform. In addition, the Commission published our main 2023 General Election report over a year ago. The two reports are available from our website.
As you are aware, election is a process governed by law. Many of your recommendations require the review of our electoral laws. For this reason, the Commission had interfaced with our National Assembly, including a retreat with the Joint Committee on Electoral Matters (Senate and House of Representatives). We appeal to the National Assembly for an expeditious consideration of the electoral reform proposal.
“An early passage of law is critical to our planning for the elections. Uncertainty over the legal framework for the election can unsettle the work of the Commission as the election draws nearer.
“We look forward to the next EU EOM for the 2027 General Election. As you are aware, international Election Observation Missions are deployed on the invitation of the Commission. I want to reassure that we will continue to engage with you. Very soon the Commission will send out invitations to the EU as well as the Commonwealth, the African Union and ECOWAS for the 2027 General Election.
“We believe that the recommendations arising from your observation of our election and electoral process help to improve the quality of our elections and electoral activities.”