Use governorship poll to address presidential election challenges, CSOs urge INEC

The chairman of the Conference of Northern States Civil Society Network, Ambassador Ibrahim Waiya, urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Sunday to treat the upcoming polls as a fresh opportunity to correct the shortcomings observed in the recent presidential and National Assembly elections. The network specifically recommended that INEC deploy trained ad‑hoc staff to operate the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), noting that untrained personnel were used in the previous elections. Waiya emphasized that “INEC should fix the challenges now so as to restore the confidence of Nigerians in the electoral umpire.”

Regarding the forthcoming governorship and State Assembly elections, Waiya described the situation as a “golden opportunity” for INEC to address several persistent issues. These include the inadequate utilization of BVAS—a measure pledged by INEC to curb electoral malpractice—early deployment of election materials to all polling units, and the provision of facilities for persons with special disabilities in line with INEC guidelines. He warned that sabotage by some INEC officials, who replaced trained ad‑hoc staff with unqualified personnel just a day before the elections, must be stopped.

Waiya also highlighted that the presidential elections raised serious credibility concerns for INEC, casting doubt on the commission’s preparedness to conduct free, fair, and credible elections. He observed that the elections were highly polarized along religious and ethnic lines, though the timely distribution of electoral materials to local government offices was commendable. Despite numerous assurances from INEC about its readiness, the conduct of the February 25 presidential election fell short of Nigerians’ high expectations, especially given that over 85 million eligible voters were registered.

The chairman noted widespread dissatisfaction with the election outcome, pointing to numerous irregularities that spanned the pre‑, during‑, and post‑election periods. He identified undemocratic practices in the pre‑election phase—particularly the lack of internal democracy within political parties and the commercialization of party primaries—as factors that institutionalized vote‑buying and ultimately affected the general election.