INEC proposes 142 post-election reforms, urges swift legislative action

INEC proposes 142 post-election reforms, urges swift legislative action

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, announced on Monday that the commission has submitted 142 post-election recommendations to federal lawmakers. Of these, eight require amendments to either the 1999 Constitution or the Electoral Act 2022.

Yakubu highlighted that INEC is working closely with the National Assembly to ensure these amendments are made ahead of the next election.

“We’ve been engaging with the National Assembly and are pleased with both our discussions and the urgency with which they intend to act. This will help ensure the necessary changes are in place well before the 2027 general elections,” he stated while addressing State House Correspondents at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.

Yakubu, who witnessed two INEC National Commissioners—Abdulrazak Tukur (North West) and Professor Sunday Aja (South East)—take the oath of office before President Bola Tinubu, said further details would come from the Legislature.

The proposed tweaks cover voter accreditation, result transmission and stronger sanctions for electoral offences—issues that drew criticism during the 2023 polls.

“Two weeks ago, we had a retreat in Lagos with the joint committee of the Senate and House of Representatives on electoral reform.

Thereafter, the National Assembly will organise a public hearing, and it’s after the public hearing that a new bill will be submitted to the President for consideration.

“We’re working with the National Assembly on electoral reform, but at this point, I’m not going to give you any more details.

“You will hear from the National Assembly whose responsibility it is, but we reviewed the 2023 general elections on our own.

“We engaged with the stakeholders. We came up with 142 recommendations. Out of these, eight require constitutional or Electoral Act amendments, and we discussed this with members of the National Assembly,” he stated.

Civil society groups, such as Yiaga Africa and the Centre for Democracy and Development, have urged a speedy passage to avoid the late-cycle rush that plagued the 2022 Act.

Yakubu addressed recent speculations about his sack, saying, “As far as the law is concerned, I remain the Chairman of INEC, Chief Electoral Commissioner of the Federation and returning officer for presidential elections.”

Online claims that Yakubu had been sacked first surfaced in early April and were amplified on social media before the Presidency, INEC headquarters, and several fact-check organisations branded them fake news.

“I don’t think we need to waste time so much about these unnecessary speculations. As far as the law is concerned, and as far as I’m aware, I remain the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, and under the Constitution, the Chief Electoral Commissioner of the Federation, and under the Electoral Act, the returning officer for the presidential election,” he responded.

He explained that the demise of an INEC Resident Commissioner and the retirement of another necessitated replacements.

“We are here today, basically for the swearing in of two national commissioners. As you are aware, the commission is made up of a chairman and 12 national commissioners drawn on the basis of two commissioners per geopolitical zone.

“So vacancies existed for the North West and the South East, and the Senate has screened and confirmed the nominees, and Mr President today performed the swearing in.

“About two weeks ago or so, we lost one of our resident electoral commissioners, Niyi Ijalaye, may his soul rest in peace. So now we have almost the full complement of commissioners on electoral reform.”

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