The failure of the Independent National Electoral Commission to conclude the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council election at the first round of balloting has thrown up questions whether the nations electoral system is regressing or progressing. This has remained a source of worry and anxiety for electoral stakeholders in and around the country. It has also brought to the fore the overarching need to deconstruct the growing trend where INEC is clearly unable to successfully conclude elections the commission has conducted since the new electoral managers led by Professor Mahmud Yakubu assumed the mantle of leadership. If INEC cannot get the FCT elections right in one round of balloting, then what do we expect in tedious terrain where it is difficult to police the men and materials earmarked for any given poll'Some of the reasons adduced for cancellation of elections in most affected places could be summarized into three; namely: over voting, non-use of Smart Card Readers (SCRs), and, of course, violence. Since INEC declared the Kogi governorship election inconclusive despite the fact that the late APC candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu, was in comfortable lead, the electoral umpire has invited mischievousness from the politicians who have now perfected the mischief of rendering all elections inconclusive. As argued previously on this page, as long as election possesses any serious challenge to most Nigerian politicians they are already to truncate the entire process to alter the outcome of the exercise in their favour. Put simply, once it becomes obvious that a politician appears unpopular in a particular area, he/she will most likely foment trouble in such localities with the aim of causing disruption of the exercise in the areas. Unless, we address the illiberal political culture of winning at all cost, there may be little INEC can do to discourage the readiness of some political stakeholders to create confusion in the electoral process.The share resources that go into elections both at the level of candidates, political parties, supporters and even the umpireINECis so mind-boggling that many pray never to hit such a stunning and underwing stalemate. An indeterminate election breeds confusion. And the confusion escalates whenever whole communities or what INEC terms polling units or registration areas have to redo their voting in isolation. It is a pain in the neck to INEC. It is a pain in the neck for government and it is a pain in the neck for the people. Talk about the colossal waste of time, energy and resources that accompany any rerun election meant to right an incomplete election.The serial inconclusiveness of elections under Prof. Yakubu began from the Kogi State Governorship election where the leading candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu died before the exercise could be finalized. This was closely followed by the the Bayelsa State Governorship election and then the Rivers State National and State Houses of Assembly rerun elections that had the unenviable record of having been tension soaked and violence full. Why many have called on the post Prof. Attahiru Jegas INEC to accept full responsibility for the unacceptable turn of events in the management of elections, operatives of the electoral management body are quick to point out that even under Jega there were indeterminate elections in places like Ekiti, Anambra and Taraba states. Bedsides they blame politicians for not allowing the umpire to independently execute their mandate during any election but ever scheming to outdo their opponents even if it means commandeering voting materials and writing spurious results in their bedrooms. The courts have not also helped matters as glaring cases of such heist in some states in the federation had been validated by the judiciary to the consternation of the people.Besides, the inability of INEC to successfully conduct election in a relatively peaceful environment like the FCT with full complement of all security agencies, in one round of balloting without rerun clearly indicate and validate the need to urgently expand the legal frontiers of our electoral laws in order to arrest the growing worrisome signals. According to a Daily Trust news report, some political parties have expressed their displeasure with the INEC for serially conducting what has come to be known as inconclusive elections. The parties specifically chided the electoral umpire over its inability to conduct conclusive elections in the six Area Councils of the FCT. They wondered why the Kogi and Bayelsa states governorship elections dragged to second round, while the National and State Assembly elections in Rivers State were also declared inconclusive.More specifically, the FCT Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Yahaya Yunusa Suleiman, accused INEC of culpability in the unsatisfactory election in some of the Area Councils. He alleged that the inconclusive election was pre-planned by the FCT INEC to rig into office a favoured political party. He pointed out that the FCT Area Councils Election was marred by illegitimate voters. On his part, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Abdullahi Adamu Candido, noted that the increasing rate of inconclusive elections do not augur well for INEC as an institution. He called for concerted efforts by the stakeholders to ensure that elections are conclusive and final.As a way forward, most analysts have called for a comprehensive review of the INECs approved guidelines and regulations adopted for the conduct of the 2015 General Elections to address the issue of inconclusive election. They are quick to note that the 2010 Electoral Act was hurriedly amended and assented on the eve of the 2015 General Elections. According to insiders in INEC, the Amendment Bill was passed by the National Assembly on March 10, 2015 and received presidential assent on March 26, 2015; two days to historic March 28, 2015 Presidential Election against the express provisions of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance, and other international protocols, that stipulate that alterations to electoral laws must be completed at least six months before the commencement date of any proposed elections.Given the centrality of periodic elections to the working of democratic governance, political scientists have noted that the administration of election is a complex task involving critical phases of an electoral process; namely: constituency delineation, voter registration and verification, vote casting or balloting, counting, tabulation and collation as well as declaration of poll results.Above all, INEC must steer itself away from doubtful and questionable electoral outcomes if it wants to continue to enjoy the esteem and respectability of the populace. Ambiguous outcomes during election would only serve to dampen the integrity of the process. In the final analysis, since elections are very important to the working of representative democracy like ours, any measure to further ensure the credibility and integrity of the nations electoral system would be a worthwhile effort which will require the support of all stakeholders to succeed.The post INECs New Pain In The Neck appeared first on Nigerian News from Leadership News.
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