AHEAD of the 2027 general elections, the Inter-Party Advisory Council has called on the leadership of the National Assembly to prioritise electoral reforms, particularly the review of the Electoral Act, 2022.
IPAC National Chairman, Yusuf Dantalle, made the demand in an interview with The PUNCH in Abuja, on Wednesday.
According to Dantalle, the current Electoral Act does not provide sufficient sanctions for election offenders.
“Where there is no punishment, where there’s no deterrent, there’s no offence. So, punishment must be meted out to stop electoral offences.
“Where you have people do whatever they want to do against the electoral system and go away with it, it is unacceptable. People must be punished. On this note, I subscribe to the establishment of the electoral offences tribunal or commission,” Dantalle said.
On his part, a chieftain of the Labour Party and spokesman to Mr Peter Obi, the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Mr Tanko Yakassai, urged the National Assembly to champion electoral reforms as they relate to the relevant provisions of the 1999 constitution (as amended).
He said, “The National Assembly must champion the aspect of electoral reforms that have to do with the constitution. Any amendment to the Electoral Act must be reflected in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“The issue of defection and transmission of results, as well as the processes of picking candidates should be worked on. The section that deals with a candidate’s qualifications and the powers of the Independent National Electoral Commission to disqualify candidates for failure to meet the requirements for eligibility is very important.”
