By CHARLES IWUOHA

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has called for the collaboration of the political parties in the country, and the lnter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) to strengthen the electoral system.

Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, made the call on Tuesday at first regular quarterly consultative meeting with political parties in Abuja.

Yakubu used the occasion to congratulate the new Chairman of IPAC, Yusuf Dantalle, who is also the Chairman of the Allied People’s Movement (APM), and other officials of the Council on their election.

He explained that the Commission looks forward to working with the council harmoniously in the best interest of our electoral democracy of which political parties are a strong pillar for elective representation.

"Furthermore, today’s meeting is the first since the conclusion of the bye-elections and Court-ordered re-run elections held last month in 26 States of the Federation.

"With the exception of two constituencies in Enugu and Kano States, winners have emerged from the bye-elections and rerun elections. Again, like the 2023 General Election, the recent bye-elections and re-run elections also produced the most diverse outcome in terms of party representation,” the INEC Chairman said.

According to him, "Seven political parties won elections in different National and State Assembly constituencies. In some cases, parties won elections in constituencies outside their assumed strongholds.

"We congratulate the winners. However, as you are aware, elections were disrupted by thugs in Enugu South 1 State Constituency of Enugu State and Kunchi/Tsanyawa State Constituency of Kano State. We are engaging with stakeholders, including the security agencies. Very soon, a new date will be announced for the re-run elections in the two State constituencies.

"The main focus of today’s meeting is the off-cycle Governorship elections in Edo and Ondo States. As you are aware, the two elections are holding later this year. The Edo State Governorship election is holding in the next six months on Saturday, 21st September 2024 while the Ondo State Governorship election is holding in eight months Saturday, 16 November 2024.

"Already, party primaries for the Edo State Governorship election have been concluded. By the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the election, political parties have 20 days to upload the list and personal particulars of their candidates to our dedicated portal.

"We have trained party Liaison Officers and established a Help Desk for political parties. The portal opened on 4th March 2024 and will automatically shut down at 6pm on Saturday 24thMarch 2024.

"Two weeks later, only six parties have uploaded their nominations to the portal. We urge you to keep to our schedule of activities and avoid last minute rush that may undermine your ability to successfully nominate your candidates.

"There will be no extension of time beyond the deadline already published in the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the election, to enable us publish the personal particulars of candidates (Form EC9) on 31st March 2024 as required by law.

5. For the Ondo State Governorship election, party primaries begin in the next two weeks on 6thApril 2024 and ends three weeks later on 27thApril 2024. So far, 16 out of 19 political parties have indicated interest in participating in the election. I urge political parties to adhere strictly to your proposed dates and modes of primaries. Frequent changes as we witnessed recently during the Edo primaries are not only disruptive but costly. The Commission cannot mobilise, demobilise and remobilise our officials for the monitoring of party primaries at the convenience of political parties. Parties should stick to their proposed dates and modes of primaries for certainty and optimal deployment of resources.

"Similarly, political parties should avoid acrimonious primaries. Increasingly, the conduct of parallel primaries and the emergence of multiple candidates is a frequent occurrence. So too is the tendency to grant waivers to candidates who were a few days earlier card-carrying members of other political parties and nominating such persons to the Commission as their candidates for election.

"Some of these infractions lead to unnecessary litigations among party members in which the Commission is always joined as a party.

"The legal fees and cost of producing Certified True Copies (CTCs) of documents can be used more productively in other electoral activities by both the political parties and the Commission. We must find a solution to this situation.

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