'Establish political party monitoring agency to curtail violations of electoral guidelines' – Forum

The Electoral Forum on Tuesday, July 25, 2023 stressed the need to set up a political party monitoring agency, if the trend of parties’ violation of electoral guidelines and ideals of electoral conduct persisted.

Members of the forum suggested this during The Electoral Forum 11th Technical Session Public virtual meeting. The Chair of the Forum, Prof. Adebayo Olukoshi, said the meeting focused on understanding the impact of political parties on the quality of elections in Nigeria.

Olukoshi said that the role of political parties in the democratic process, and the credibility and quality of elections had been a recurrent issue of concern for the Forum.

He outlined the objectives of the technical session to include examining the role, significance and performance of political parties in Nigeria as critical institutions for electoral credibility and democratic advancement.

The forum therefore, recommended some actions for improving political parties and ensuring that they contributed to credible elections.

“These recommendations suggested that INEC’s political party deparment should be strengthened including professional training for staff.

“That parties should be strengthened to ensure their survival after elections.

“Presently, we have nine parties with elected representatives at the National and State Assemblies, a diversity which might be lost if parties are not strengthened.

“The INEC Department on Election and Party Monitoring should be reorganised and reinforced to focus strictly on political parties matters – registration, regulations, monitoring etc; also, campaign finance monitoring should be given more visibility.

Olukoshi said there should be much greater attention to ways of growing party membership, programme vision, and internal party democracy in Nigeria.

He said that the powers of the electoral commission should be strengthened and exercised to allow it to decide on, and provide verdicts, on party candidacy and leadership as stipulated in the Electoral Act 2022.

“On the imperative of strengthening INEC’s impartiality in monitoring political parties, efforts should be exerted at depoliticising the appointment of members of the commission, including the Chairperson and National Commissioners, and Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs).”

He added that there would be much benefits in revisiting the Uwaise report in order, inter alia, to rid INEC of the extra baggage so that it did not become overburdened.”

Olukoshi said the technical session was aimed at reviewing the engagement between INEC and political parties and to identify strategies and mechanisms for addressing the challenges.

Prof. Adele Jinadu, a political analyst, speaking on the topic: “Political parties as institution of democracy: Theory and ideals,” said the struggle for democracy was a perpetual attempt to expand the political space, inclusion, participation and accountability.

“Political parties and the party system in Nigeria have been shaped by a complex intersection of colonial-rule-induced fusion of ethno-regionalism, coupled with long term experience with military rule.”

“Political parties have general tendency to develop internal oligarchies of the rich and powerful who are in full control of these parties, which raises concerns about internal democracy.”

Jinadu identified the proclivity for political parties and candidates to rely on ethno-regional and religious appeals and the issue of contradictory judicial verdicts as some of the challenges affecting the electoral process.

Hajia Amina Zakari, former INEC National Commissioner, said INEC had over the years laid out a litany of efforts in engaging and strengthening political parties and the challenges encountered.

Zakari said that the efforts included monitoring party finance, convention and primaries, capacity-building programmes and enforcement of requirements of national spread and presence in the FCT, amongst others.

She said the success of the efforts was, however, limited by trust gaps between parties and INEC, disregard for electoral rules by political parties, malfeasance by some staff of the commission, among others .