As Nigeria holds the gubernatorial and State legislative elections, the
Civil Society Election Situation Room feels compelled to raise a number of
issues that could affect the credibility of the elections on 26 April.
As Nigeria holds the gubernatorial and State legislative elections, the
Civil Society Election Situation Room feels compelled to raise a number of
issues that could affect the credibility of the elections on 26 April.
As we pointed out in our final statement on the Presidential election - and
which indeed we raised after the National Assembly elections on 9 April –
the problems associated with collation are now in danger of derailing the
process altogether. The post-election violence associated with the
presidential election was fuelled by the perception among many of the
contenders that the election was won and lost at the point of collation,
and the further perception that the leadership of INEC was unable or
unwilling to exercise proper oversight function over its personnel in the
field. INEC needs to take firm and aggressive action to deal with these
perceptions.
In the aftermath of the post-election violence following the presidential
election, we are aware that it has become necessary to authorise an
enhanced deployment of security agencies. We are calling on the political
authorities responsible for these deployments to ensure that they do so in
a professional and non-partisan manner, and that the applicable rules of
engagement are not disproportionate to the objective of ensuring free,
fair and credible elections. Additionally, the security agencies have an
obligation to operate in a manner that is compatible with their political
neutrality. The Civil Society Election Situation Room will itself be
independently monitoring the operations of the security forces during the
gubernatorial elections and we encourage any persons or groups with any
reports to bring them to the attention of the Situation Room.
The Election Situation Room also warns that it may become necessary to
pursue a cause of action against persons responsible for instigating and
perpetrating post election violence in Nigeria at the International
Criminal Court (ICC).
The Civil Society Election Situation Room joins the generality of
Nigerians in calling on the country’s security officers to ensure the
safety of election administrators, monitors and observers, and in
particular the safety of Youth Corps members who are involved in election
administration.
Finally, in several states, we note the presence of multiple and
contradictory court judgments concerning the eligibility of different
candidates to represent the same party in respect of the same office. This
makes it incumbent on INEC to come out with a clear position on which
candidate is legally recognized to stand for the affected parties on the
day of the ballot. The Civil Society Election Situation Room is perturbed
by INEC’s confusing and unsatisfactory attitude to this issue. We call on
INEC to redress this urgently and transparently before voting starts.
For: Elections Situation Room
Dr Jibrin Ibrahim
Executive Director
Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD)
Tel: 0803 4001200
Clement Nwankwo
Executive Director
Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC)
Tel: 0803 8899999
2011 ELECTION SITUATION ROOM MEMBERS.
Action Aid Nigeria
Alliance for Credible Election (ACE)
Centre for Democracy and Development
Centre for Democratic Development Research and Training
African Centre for Leadership Strategy and Development (Centre LSD)
CLEEN Foundation
Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)
Community Emergency Response Initiative (CERI)
Community Life Project (CLP)
Empowering Women for Excellence Initiative (EWEI)
Enough is Enough
Forward Africa
Human Development and Care Centre
Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law
JDPC/Caritas Nigeria
Next Generation Youth Initiative
Niger Delta Budget Monitoring Group
Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA)
Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC)
Transition Monitoring Group (TMG)
Women Environment Programme
Women’s Right to Education Program (WREP)
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