INEC raises joint panel with ICPC THE Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General, Mrs. Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba, has called on Nigerias political leaders and parties to display political will to ensure a credible election and avoid violence by all means. Masire-Mwamba was on a three-day visit to Nigeria as a precursor to monitoring the April general elections.Also, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, has restated the commitment of the commission to eliminating all forms of corrupt practices in the electoral processes. Speaking when he inaugurated the INEC/ICPC Collaboration Committee on the 2011 elections, Jega, who was represented by the Acting Chairman and National Commissioner in charge of Operations, Dr. Nuru Yakubu, described the committee as the culmination of the collective approach by both the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) and INEC to win the battle against corruption in the nations electoral system. Masire-Mwamba, in her departure statement at a press conference in Abuja yesterday, said that the Commonwealth looked up to Nigeria to provide leadership for the rest of Africa in terms of credible, free and fair elections, even as 16 other nations would hold their elections on the continent in 2011. The Commonwealth chief noted that her visit was to engage key actors and stakeholders involved in the forthcoming elections and re-affirm the Commonwealths support for a peaceful and credible process. According to her, increase in awareness and interest to register and vote was noticed among the people of Nigeria. The Commonwealth takes a keen interest in elections across its membership. Nigeria is a valued member with whom we have a strong and mutual beneficial engagement. Nigeria is a leader on the continent, playing a significant role in promoting peace and regional economic growth and development. It matters to the Commonwealth, Africa and the world that Nigeria and other member-states conduct credible elections, she said. Masire-Mwanba added that during her visit, she met with leaders of political parties, INEC, civil society and the international community, who all expressed their views on the electoral process. In all our meetings, we had candid and open discussions. Stakeholders have noted positive steps in the preparations so far. I am hopeful that if all actorspoliticians, civil society, the public and you, members of the mediacontinue to play your expected roles, there can be an outcome that reflects the will and aspirations of the people. The people need to show faith in the democratic process and participate in it. It is crucial that violence is avoided by all means, and the rule of law must be allowed to prevail. All must ensure that both the process and the outcome meet Commonwealth values as well as international and regional electoral benchmarks to which Nigeria has committed itself, she said. She noted that voters registration was a continuous process since there were new 18-year-olds every year and the integrity of the voters register must be maintained. The Head of Africa Secretariat, Political Affairs Division of the Commonwealth, Ambassador Ayo Oke, added that the Commonwealth had been engaging with INEC since August 2010 through workshops and discussions of challenges peculiar to Nigeria as well as issues regarding voters registration, which he said had been useful to the commission. He said: INEC is totally committed to ensuring that the electoral process is sanitised. Consequently, it has engaged all stakeholders to be able to do this. The commission fully realises and appreciates the fact that these synergies make the realisation of its mandate easier. The collaboration with ICPC is therefore informed by this desire to engage all partners in progress for the building of a better Nigeria. The Chairman expressed the commissions appreciation for the wonderful support and show of confidence reposed in it by Nigerians to deliver credible elections. He said the commission was committed to reciprocating unwavering integrity and all that it takes within the law to uphold this confidence. Integrity is indeed our watch-word in all our dealings with Nigerians. This message has been conveyed to all the commissions workforce (permanent and ad-hoc) and it shall not hesitate to invoke the necessary sanctions against any staff that may breach due process. The committee, among others, is tasked with placing at the disposal of INEC the expertise of ICPC in corruption risk assessment and advisory services in corruption prevention strategies. Others include: Building the capacity of relevant units in INEC on identification/detection of corruption red flags; and providing expert opinion on the level of transparency, credibility and integrity in electoral process. Members of the committee drawn from both INEC and ICPC include Oche Gordon (ICPC), M. A. Salam (ICPC), S. L. Wakama (ICPC), Rasheedat Okoduwa (ICPC), Okey Ndeche (INEC), Torgba Nyitse (INEC), Ibrahim Biu (INEC), Mustapha Muhammed Kuta (INEC), Ikwunma Halliday (INEC) and Saseyi Feyijimi (INEC).
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