Date Published: 04/12/10

Jonathan wants "Fresh Bloods" in INEC

Goodluck Jonathan

Acting President Goodluck Jonathan has hinted at a possible overhaul of the rank and file of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in his determination to ensure a credible election ahead of the 2011 General elections in Nigeria.

The Acting President gave this indication at a breakfast round table with officials and members of the Council on Foreign Relation, CFR, in Washington DC.
 “we will inject fresh blood and make sure that we bring people that if we mention their names, people in the civil society will be happy," the Acting President said.

According to him "“at the national level, most of the officers have completed their tenure and some will complete theirs in a couple of months. So we are going to review them individually and the ones we feel are not good enough to be re-appointed, we will not reappoint them.”

President Jonathan however added INEC's peceived incompetence is a matter of perception stressing that “If people have a perception that a body cannot do what is right, even if they do what is right, people find it difficult to believe,” he said. “The story of INEC comes with the feeling that it cannot conduct credible elections in Nigeria, but that is psychological like I said it has to do with perception.”

The Acting President further stated that “I am convinced that the present INEC can conduct free and credible elections. What happened in our previous elections is just one missing link. 

“It has nothing to do with the laws. That is why I normally emphasise that if you do not change any of our laws, we can still conduct elections.

“The missing link is that our electoral law says at the end of voting; election results must be announced at the polling unit.

“Most of the polling units handle not more than 500 voters, there are very few above that and everybody contesting election is supposed to have an agent at every polling unit.

“We also have observers and our law says at the end of the election, the result must be declared in each of these units, but it is always a problem declaring the result at the unit level because of conflicts.

“ In most cases, they take the results, at the end of the voting, to the local government headquarters for collation and it is in that process that people think there are wrongdoings.

“That has been the problem in Nigeria and that is why we insist that if you cannot declare the results at that polling unit, we cancel them. All results must be declared at the polling unit and that is what happened in Anambra and Edo,” he said.