According to the organisation, they will ensure the electoral commission delivers credible polls.
A non-governmental organisation, Human & Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has called on Nigeria's anti-corruption agencies to diligently and conscientiously monitor the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the build-up to the 2023 elections.
According to the organisation, they will ensure the electoral commission delivers credible polls.
The organisation which expressed concern that the electoral body might not deliver free, fair and credible elections in the 2023 general elections, described the monitoring staff and officials of the commission by anti-graft agencies as pertinent.
HEDA raised the concern following what it described as twists and turns emanating from INEC recently regarding the 2023 general elections and the development of Ekiti and Osun State governorship polls.
It said, "Anti-corruption agencies are charged to vigorously monitor officials of the Commission to avoid inducement and compromise of the 2023 elections."
HEDA stated this in a statement issued to SaharaReporters on Monday, which was signed by its chairman, Olarenwaju Suraju.
The group decried INEC's inconsistency regarding the issuance of Certified True Copies (CTC) of the BVAS (Bimodal Voter Accreditation System) deployed in the Osun State governorship election to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate and Governor Adegboyega Oyetola may mar the 2023 general elections.
It stated that on July 18, 2022, two days after the Osun state governorship election was conducted, the APC candidate and Governor Oyetola reportedly applied for the Certified True Copies (CTC) of the BVAS Report for the election. The world had commended the conduct of the election on the basis of BVAS.
According to the statement, "INEC was on record to have after the statutory payments were made on July 29, 2022, issued the CTC of the BVAS Report to APC and Oyetola.
"Following, APC and Oyetola served INEC their Petition challenging results in 749 polling units on the account of suspected over-voting they believed took place in those polling units.
"INEC is alleged to, having discovered the palpable inconsistencies between figures recorded as accredited votes on the EC8A (result sheet) and the BVAS Report, have tampered with the contents of the original BVAS report to protect the mandate awarded to Ademola Adeleke and PDP, at the expense of a credible election, by issuing a fresh CTC to the defendants, claiming the CTC earlier issued to APC and Oyetola was incomplete and unsynchronised."
Suraju stated that considering the Ekiti and Osun elections were conducted and results declared on the basis of BVAC, how possible and plausible was it for INEC to have declared a winner from an unsynchronized BVAC? Considering the BVAC report issued was more than 10 days after the Osun election.
"As an organisation committed to fighting against corruption; financial and electoral, HEDA is concerned about this development. We observed the Osun election and engaged the process in collaboration with anti-corruption agencies to campaign against vote-buying before and during that election.
"Noting this particular serious inconsistency and those associated with the senatorial tickets bids of the current Senate President in Yobe and Former Governor Godswill Akpabio in Akwa Ibom, INEC is charged to do better and remain consistent for a credible, free, fair and popular election in 2023,"
It charged anti-corruption agencies to conscientiously follow up on INEC, in the build-up to the 2023 elections, so that the pols can be far better than in previous elections.
"Anti-corruption agencies are further charged to vigorously monitor officials of the Commission to avoid inducement and compromise of the 2023 elections," the statement partly read.