A major political storm is brewing over a fresh proposal to amend the 1999 Constitution to allow all elections in Nigeria to be conducted on the same day in 2027.

While leading opposition parties ? the Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party, African Democratic Congress, and New Nigeria People?s Party ? have thrown their weight behind the move, the ruling All Progressives Congress has rejected it, warning of dire consequences.

The proposal, spearheaded by the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review, chaired by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, is being considered as part of broader constitutional amendments following zonal consultations across the six geo-political zones.

If passed, the amendment would mandate the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct presidential, governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly polls in a single day ? a move touted to drastically cut costs and reduce post-election bandwagon effects.

Opposition back plan

Backing the initiative, the National Publicity Secretary of the NNPP, Ladipo Johnson, argued that same-day polls would be both cost-effective and efficient.

He said, ?The costs of elections are too high, just like those of governance. And any reasonable thing to reduce the costs should be looked at. Even for the political parties, it is cheaper and more efficient for them to do their elections in one day.?

On concerns over rigging, Johnson dismissed fears, saying, ?If these people are going to rig, they will rig. But if you have all your elections in one day, all your candidates are able to pool together resources so that the polling unit is properly manned.?

The Labour Party also gave its full backing. National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said the proposal would eliminate staggered elections and reduce bandwagon effects.

He noted, ?The Labour Party aligns itself with the position that all elections should hold the same day? It?s also going to help reduce the cost of funding elections, logistics, and bandwagon effect where some voters, after knowing who wins the presidential poll, will start moving towards that direction in subsequent elections.?

For the PDP, Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, welcomed the idea but warned against manipulation.

?It is a welcome development if it is done with sincerity, clear intent and purpose. The truth is that the bogus amount that the government spends on elections is mind-boggling. There?s no rational reason why we spend over $350 billion conducting elections in this country, where at the end of the day, you don?t get value for the outcome of such votes,? he said.

The ADC, through its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, also declared support but with a caveat.

?Our support for doing the election on the same day is contingent on INEC logistics being top notch. At the moment, we don?t see any evidence that INEC is committed to improving its logistics,? he said.

APGA, lawmakers caution

But not all stakeholders are convinced. The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) warned that the logistics could be chaotic.

APGA spokesman, Ejimofor Okpara, told The PUNCH, ?As laudable as it sounds, we believe it will be chaotic. Our elections, as they are, already appear too cumbersome, logistics-wise, for INEC. One can only imagine the outlook if these major elections are held in one day.?

Lawmakers are also split. North-West caucus leader, Sada Soli (APC, Katsina), backed the bill, describing it as ?an idea whose time has come.?

But Osun lawmaker, Oluwole Oke, disagreed, insisting, ?It?s INEC?s prerogative to decide which date to conduct elections.?

Lagos lawmaker, Babajimi Benson, added, ?I strongly believe that this decision should be included only in the INEC Act so as to make amendments easy? This (proposed) amendment in the constitution may make it very difficult in the future.?

APC rejects move

The APC formally opposed the proposal, describing staggered elections as the better option.

Deputy National Organising Secretary, Nze Chidi Duru, warned, ?To hold all elections on the same day puts a lot of pressure on the institution that is governing elections in Nigeria.

?You?re going to be holding elections at the State Assembly, House of Reps, Senate, governors, and the President. After those four years, INEC now sits back and literally does nothing.?

He added that staggered polls would keep INEC ?active year-round? and reduce the risk of system collapse.

Lawyers weigh in

A former Director of Voter Education at INEC, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, condemned the plan, recalling that a similar attempt in 2003 was rejected by the courts.

?This is not a new idea. They tried this before when we were in INEC, and we actually went to court before the 2002 and 2003 elections. We won the case then,? he said, warning that Nigeria lacked the logistics and literacy levels required for such an exercise.

However, prominent lawyers see merit in the idea.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Lekan Ojo, argued: ?From the economic perspective, it is a cost-saving measure? But it may be very clumsy. The electoral officers may be overwhelmed and that may lead to a floodgate of litigations.?

Another SAN, Wale Balogun, was more sceptical: ?If our experience is anything to go by, then I?m afraid for Nigeria. I don?t think we have the capacity to do so.?

For Adedayo Adedeji (SAN), the move would ?drastically reduce the cost of conducting elections,? though he warned of doubts over INEC?s capacity.

Civil society

Civil society leaders, including Auwal Musa Rafsanjani of the Transition Monitoring Group and Debo Adeniran of the Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, endorsed the proposal, insisting it would cut costs and make elections more transparent. (The PUNCH)

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