Nigeria Content Online

The Independent National Electoral Commission has
promised to punish political parties who mock their internal democratic
rules and illicitly substitute candidates after college nominations.

Attahiru Jega, the INEC chairman, said part of the
commission’s approach to delivering credible elections will be to
ensure there is internal democracy in parties.

“If you don’t follow the rules of conducting
primaries, by law we can decide not to accept it,” he told a women
rights advocacy team yesterday.

“We want parties to be serious and respect their own rules.”

The group, led by Women Affairs Minister, Josephine
Anenih and the chairpersons of the Senate and House committee on Women
Affairs, Eme Ekaete and Binta Garba respectively, said it needs the
support of the commission to help scale up women’s participation in
politics nationwide, and part of the bane disallowing that, is the
culture of arbitrary replacement of candidates after primaries, in
which women, the team said, are often the victims.

Not shy to punish

Responding to questions on how that will be tackled,
Mr. Jega said parties breaking their internal basic guidelines will not
escape sanctions.

“We will not be shy to apply the sanctions if and
when it becomes necessary to do so. Anything we are permitted to do by
the law, we will do,” he said.

He said the commission is “working extra hard” and
“examining and re-examining” options driven at improving issues of
logistics vital to curbing the late arrival of election materials at
polling centres, another challenge that has helped mar Nigeria’s polls.

“It is possible to do it and we are applying our mind and energy to
getting that right,” he said. Mr. Jega said he still believes securing
good elections, “is not an impossible task, it is doable and we will do
our best.”