Elder statesmen advise INEC to reinvent ahead of guber, legislative elections

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been tasked to rectify lapses of the February 25, 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections for a better outing this weekend.

A group of elder statesmen, under the aegis of The Compatriots, made the appeal at the weekend.

In a post-election statement signed by its chairman and former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Obong Victor Attah, the group applauded Nigerians for their enthusiastic and orderly participation in the just-concluded poll, urging them to sustain the tempo.

“It is clear that a lot of work needs to be done to restore confidence in the systems and processes of INEC. With the state-level elections holding this weekend, it is very important that all faulty systems and processes of INEC be rectified, preparations and provision of security be seriously addressed,” the statement read.

The socio-political and good governance advocacy body, however, expressed worry over reports of violence in some parts of the country and “adverse impact of election management, which left much to be improved upon because of the process gaps and lack of transparency during collation of results.”

Attah pointed out that mass participation of youths remains an encouraging development for the political future of the country.

He commended aggrieved presidential candidates for exploring legal window to challenge outcome of the contest.

His words: “The Compatriots notes with deep regret the violence in some areas and loss of lives associated with the process during the voting on election day. Nigerians died during the election on the February 25, including youth corpers in Rivers State. Based on media reports, they were killed by thugs during election for refusing to compromise the process. These corpers are heroes of our aspiring nation. While we pray for repose of the souls of all those, who lost their lives, and for their families, who must now cope with this unimaginable loss, we urge that no effort should be spared to bring the culprits to justice.

“The global expectation for democratic elections is that they will be transparent, free, fair and credible. Only an election that reflects the sovereign will of the electorate that can convey legitimacy on any government.

“We, therefore, note with regret that our elections were tarnished by process failures and lack of transparency. Now that the first phase of the process is over, the contestants have either decided to affirm their victories or challenge their losses in court. The decision of aggrieved contestants to seek redress through the courts reinforces the foundation of our democratic system and the rule of law. It is critical to the sustainability of our system that the judiciary is impartial and retains credibility with the people. It is, therefore, vital that the judiciary dispenses justice in a manner that reflects impartiality and consistency with merits of cases.”