As many Nigerians await the 2023 presidential election scheduled on February 25, pressure continues to mount on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other political stakeholders.
The election was previously projected to go the way of others held before it, but the newly amended Electoral Act –passed into law in 2022– was a game-changer in Nigeria’s political landscape. The enactment of the new Act shook tables, leading some top officeholders at national and state levels to forfeit their positions in pursuit of their new aspirations. It also brought about an advancement in electoral transparency with the introduction of digital equipment to aid the electoral process and result transmission.
The INEC chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, had urged all party stakeholders to become familiar with the provisions of the new Act. In this article, DUBAWA highlights some of the changes that the Electoral Act brings to the political scene in Nigeria.
- Parties campaign timelapse
Political parties and candidates can only commence a public campaign 150 days before the election date and end 24 hours before the election begins. This implies that no public campaigning will be acceptable on many polling grounds on election day. Parties have more time to convince electorates in their favour before the election date, but any attempt to publicly campaign on the election ground is contravening the Electoral Act 2022.
- Overvoting
In cases where a polling unit witnesses more votes than the accredited numbers, the polling unit’s result will be cancelled by the Presiding Officer for ‘overvoting’. With digital tools like the BVAs, the Presiding officer can verify the list of accredited voters before the result is electronically transmitted. This new provision is an improvement on the former Act, which only cancels the polling unit’s result when the number of votes cast exceeds the registered voters at the unit.
- Central electronic voter database
In the former Act, the register collating the voters’ list is kept in hardcopy format at the National Headquarters and other locations. But the new Act adopts technological advancement by providing a central database where the register can be kept in electronic format. The hardcopy format is still retained, but the electronic format provides easy access across the country.
- Technological electoral process
Talking of technological advancement, the new Act adopts the use of electronic devices, such as smart card readers, electronic voting machines and other technological devices, for accreditation of voters at the polling unit. Also, the results can be electronically transmitted for accessibility and analysis during and after the election through the newly introduced Bimodal Voters Accreditation system (BVA).
- INEC fund
With the establishment of the Independent National Electoral Commission Fund, election funds meant for the commission should be released no later than a year before the general election. These funds will be generated from provisions made by the Federal Government, grants and other external aids. Also, the Act provides financial autonomy to the Commission, which means the Commission can directly receive funds from sponsoring sources, compared to the previous Act that only disburses funds after authorisation from the Ministry of Finance.
- Early party primaries
Political parties with candidates for any office must have conducted their primaries, selected their candidates and submitted the sponsored candidate to the Commission no later than 180 days before the election date. According to the new Act, in contrast with the previous Act, parties can wait 60 days before the election date to submit names.
- Contesting political appointees
Before any political appointee can be eligible to contest for any office as a candidate or delegate at elections, he/she must first resign from the office previously occupied. This is following Section 84 (12) of the new Act. However, it is one of the most controversial –yet widely accepted– provisions of the amended Act as it prevents the recirculation of political persons from ceaselessly occupying public office.
- Death of electoral candidates
Candidates’ death before the announcement of the election’s final results were also considered, as it was one of the most controversial issues in the previous Act. The new Act states that the election will be postponed and rescheduled in 14 days if a candidate dies before the election commences. Meanwhile, if a candidate dies after the election when the winner is not yet announced, the election will be suspended for not more than 21 days.
Should this happen in a poll for the legislative post, the election will commence anew. At the same time, the affected political party must have carried out a new primary and submitted the new candidate’s name as a replacement to the Commission within 14 days of the deceased. For an executive election or FCT area council, the running mate will proceed as the party’s candidate, while a new running mate is chosen within the party.
Experts weigh in
Caleb Ijioma, a journalist and serial election observer, praised the introduction of the Electoral act for bringing significant changes to the voting process in Nigeria.
He believed that the Act would protect the fairness of the election. “Politicians and even the electoral commission can now be compelled to make sure the exercise is free and fair,” he said.
“One of these important changes is the electronic collation and transmission of results, as seen in sections 47 and 50(2). Live results can be seen immediately after transmission to the INEC server.”
“Also, section 51 has redefined over-voting and increased the confidence of electorates on election day.”
Mr Ijioma revealed that subsequent elections were conducted better because the Act “restores sanity to our political environment.”
He said, “Elections held after the Electoral act was passed an improvement of what we’ve had in the past years. The Act birthed transparency in the electoral process. Voters don’t have to wait for days before knowing the election’s outcome.”
Austin Aigbe, a Senior Programme Officer at the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), dissected the changes that the Electoral Act brought to the electoral process.
He disclosed that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), recognised in the Act, has created some level of transparency and accountability in the electoral process, a trait missing in the 2019 election where voters can sign the Incident Form if the smartcard reader malfunctioned.
He said, “With the 2023 elections and the Electoral Act 2022, there is no need for smart card readers. And we have also gone beyond fingerprint accreditation. Many people now know what is called facial recognition. If the finger of the voter fails, the voter will be accredited using facial recognition.”
Mr Aigbe also hailed the introduction of the result viewing portal, where results can be accessible to voters through the electronic device recognition in the Electoral Acts. He described the move as proof of accountability from the electioneering board.
“INEC has increased their transparency level. Once the polling unit’s result is released, it is captured using the BVAs and pasted where voters can see it. Voters can write the polling unit results down and later go online on the INEC portal to verify that the result they saw at the polling unit is the same result online. That means anyone who sees a result online different from the one observed at the polling unit can blow a whistle.”
Conclusion
The level of awareness ahead of the 2023 general election signals a new era in Nigeria. However, more needs to be done for voters, particularly in rural areas, to understand the provisions of the Electoral Act as entrenched in the Nigerian Constitution. Sensitisation of voters can prove vital in upholding electoral transparency and fundamental human rights.
