The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is pushing for critical legal reforms that would grant it the authority to appoint and discipline top electoral officials across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
At a recent retreat held in collaboration with the National Assembly’s Joint Committee on Electoral Matters, INEC made a bold case for amending key sections of the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act 2022, where it argued that centralising the appointment of state-level electoral officials under its control would strengthen the integrity and efficiency of future elections, TheCable reported.
Mohammad Kuna, Special Adviser to INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu, told lawmakers that the current arrangement, where the President appoints Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs), needs a fundamental review explaining that the commission seeks to introduce a new role: State Directors of Elections (SDEs), who would wield the same powers as RECs but be directly accountable to INEC.
To achieve this, INEC is proposing two key legal changes: the amendment of Section 14(3)(f) of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution and Section 6(3) of the Electoral Act 2022. These amendments would enable the commission to appoint and discipline heads of its state and FCT offices without executive interference.
“Amend Section 14 (3) Paragraph F of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution to confer the power of appointing and disciplining heads of state and FCT offices,” Kuna said, noting that this structural shift is crucial to shielding Nigeria’s elections from undue political influence.
“Developments in the recent past, especially during and after the 2023 general elections, suggest the need for the commission to have greater powers to make appointments to the heads of state and FCT offices,” he added.
Lawmakers at the retreat reportedly welcomed the proposals but called for broader consultations with stakeholders, including political parties, civil society, and legal experts, as the proposed reforms are expected to feature prominently in future constitutional amendment discussions.
With Nigeria heading into a new electoral cycle, INEC insists that these reforms are not just about power, but about trust, saying that it must have the tools to ensure that those running elections at the state level are accountable, competent, and above partisan suspicion.
(Business Day)
