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As Bill Sets Guidelines For Independent
Candidates... Yar’Adua Proposes
Reduction of INEC’s Powers
•Defecting governors to lose seats
From Sufuyan
Ojeifo in Abuja, 05.10.2009 (THISDAY)
As part of his
proposed laws aimed at implementing the
electoral reforms programmes, President
Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is seeking to reduce
the powers of the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) by taking
away its duties to register and monitor
political parties.
The president also proposed the
conditions expected to be met by
political office seekers who want to
contest elections as independent
candidates.
Among the seven bills the president sent
to the National Assembly on April 30,
there is one providing for the
establishment of Political Parties
Registration and Regulatory Commission (PPPRC)
which will be the regulatory authorities
for political parties.
Entitled: “A Bill for an Act to
Establish the Political Parties
Registration and Regulatory Commission
and for Other Matters Connected
Thereto,” it seeks to divest the
Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) of its constitutional
supervisory powers over political
parties.
INEC registered all political parties
currently existing in the country.
When it is passed into law, the PPPRC,
according to Part 1, Section 2 of the
legislation, will register political
parties in accordance with the
provisions of the 1999 Constitution and
the Electoral Act, 2006.
The Commission shall monitor the
organisation and operation of political
parties, including their finances;
arrange for the examination and auditing
of the funds and accounts of political
parties; monitor political campaigns and
provide rules and regulations governing
the activities of political parties.
It will also accredit domestic civil
society groups and organisations working
in the areas of elections and provide
rules and regulations governing their
observation of elections; accredit
international election observers and
provide rules and regulations governing
their conduct and observations of
elections; accredit national and
international media organisations
observing elections and provide rules
and regulations governing their
activities.
In addition, the PPPRC, according to the
Bill, will perform all the functions
listed under sections 46, 78-105 of the
Electoral Act, 2006; set guidelines for
fund-raising exercise by political
parties from time to time; and ensure
that party conventions, congresses and
meetings are held as required by Law.
The Bill provides for the establishment
of a governing board, which shall
consist of a chairman, a deputy
chairman, six persons (one each from the
six geo-political zones) and a Director
General, all of whom shall be appointed
by the president and hold office for a
renewable five-year term.
It bars members of the commission from
holding elective office.
According to section 4, “Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary in any
enactment or law, a person who holds or
has held office as a member of the
Commission under this Act shall not,
until after a period of five years
immediately thereafter, be qualified for
any elective office.”
The Bill also empowers the president to
remove members of the Commission from
office.
Section 5 states: “Notwithstanding the
provisions of Section 3 of this Act, the
President may at anytime remove a member
of the Board, if the President is of the
opinion that it is not in the interest
of the Board for the member to continue
in office and shall notify the member in
writing to that effect.”
The Bill also empowers the president to
give directions to the Board.
According to Section 14: “Subject to the
provision of this Act, the President or
any other person on his behalf, may give
to the Board direction of general nature
or relating generally to particular
matter, but not to any particular
individual or case with regard to
exercise by the Board of its functions
under this Act and it shall be the duty
of the Board to comply with the
directions.”
In another bill entitled: “A Bill for an
Act to Alter the Provisions of the
Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria 1999 and for Other Matters
Connected Thereto,” Yar’Adua proposes
new subsections in Sections 65, 106, 131
and 177 of the constitution spelling out
the conditions for qualification as
independent candidates for federal
legislators, state legislators,
president and governor respectively.
For qualification as National Assembly
candidates in an election as prescribed
in Section 65, the bill states that “A
person standing for an election as an
independent candidate shall be qualified
for election if he is nominated by not
less than 30 and 40 registered voters
for senatorial and House of
Representatives respectively each of
whose signatures on the nomination form
shall be verified and authenticated as
provided by law, from at least
two-thirds of the electoral wards in the
relevant electoral constituency.”
In Section 106 in respect of State
Legislature, the Bill proposes a new
subsection 2 which reads: “A person
standing for an election as an
independent candidate shall be qualified
for an election if he is nominated by
not less than 50 registered voters, each
of whose signatures on the nomination
form shall be verified and authenticated
as provided by law, from at least
two-thirds of the electoral wards in the
relevant electoral constituency.”
To qualify as an independent candidate
for President, the Bill proposes a new
subsection 2 to section 131, thus: “A
person standing for an election to the
office of President as an independent
candidate shall be qualified to run for
election if he is nominated by not less
than 10 registered voters, each of whose
signatures on the nomination form shall
be verified and certified as provided by
law, from at least two-thirds of the
electoral wards of the electoral
constituency.”
The new subsection 2 to Section 177
proposes: “A person for an election to
the office of Governor of a State as an
independent candidate shall be qualified
for election if he is nominated by not
less than 20 registered voters from each
electoral ward, each of whose signatures
on the nomination form shall be verified
and certified as provided by law, from
at least two-thirds of the electoral
wards of the electoral constituency.”
The Bill proposes new subsections to
Sections 68, 109, 135 and 180 of the
constitution, which make defecting from
a party on which a person wins election
to another party as a condition for
losing the seat of a federal legislator,
state legislator, president and governor
respectively.
For instance, the new paragraph (d) to
section 135 in respect of president,
reads together with subsection (1) thus:
“ Subject to the provisions of this
Constitution, a person shall hold the
office of President until –‘…he becomes
a member of another political party
different from the political party which
sponsored his election to the office of
President.”
Also importantly, the Bill also seeks to
insert a new paragraph (d) to Section
155 of the 1999 constitution on
membership of the Indepen-dent National
Electoral Commission (INEC).
The new paragraph reads:
“notwithstanding the provision of
paragraph (c) of this section, the
appointment of members of the
Independent National Electoral
Commission may be renewed for another
term of five years.”
This proposition finds concurrence in
another Bill for an Act to amend the
INEC Act CAP 15 LFN 2004 and for other
matters connected thereto.
The Bill proposes that Section 3 be
amended in subsection (1) by inserting
“after the words - a period of five
years - the words - which may be
renewable for another period of five
years.”
Presently, the tenure of office of
members of INEC is four years, which is
renewable.
The Bill in section 2 proposes new
paragraphs (a) and (b) which prescribes
that member of INEC shall be
non-partisan and possess commensurate
professional, administrative an academic
experience respectively.
In section 182 on qualification for
office of governor, the Bill proposes
deletion of Administrative Panel of
Inquiry from the following paragraph (i)
of the constitution, which reads: “…(i)
he has been indicted for embezzlement or
fraud by a Judicial Commission of
Inquiry or an Administrative Panel of
Inquiry or a Tribunal set up under the
Tribunals of Inquiry Act, a Tribunals of
Inquiry Law or any other law by the
Federal or State Government which
indictment has been accepted by the
Federal or State Government.”
The Bill also seeks to encourage women
participation by proposing twenty women
in the membership of the executive
committee of associations wanting to be
parties.
It also wants the associations to
maintain functional and verifiable
offices in at least two-thirds of the
states of the federation.
In the explanatory memorandum, the
proponent of the bill states that it
seeks to amend the 1999 Constitution of
the Federal Republic of Nigeria to,
among others provide for independent
candidates in elections under the
Electoral Act 2006, prohibit defection
by elected persons, and guarantee the
funding of INEC in line with the
Electoral Reforms, 2009.
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