the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says that it plans to publish the final list of candidates for the presidential, Senate and House of Representatives seats on September 20 before the 2023 elections.
INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu said this on Thursday in Abuja at the “Meeting of Experts on Conducting the 2023 Nigerian General Elections in a Volatile Security Environment”.
The event was organized by the Center for Democracy and Development (CDD) in conjunction with INEC.
Mr. Yakubu said that the publication of the final list was in line with Section 32 (1) of the Electoral Act 2022 and the Calendar and Schedule of Activities published by the commission.
“This will be followed on October 4 by the publication of the final list of candidates for the state elections (Government and State Assemblies).
“Campaigning in public by political parties will officially begin on September 28 as provided by Section 94(1) of the Elections Act of 2022.
”As the campaigns begin, we are calling on all political parties and candidates to focus on issue-based campaigns.
“This is the best way to complement our efforts to ensure transparent elections in which only the votes cast by citizens determine the winner,” he said.
Yakubu said activities for the 2023 general election would enter critical stages this month starting in the next 19 days.
“The commission welcomes this initiative and as co-chair of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Electoral Security (ICCES), there is no doubt that security agencies also welcome citizens’ ideas and support towards peaceful elections,” he said.
CDD Director Idayat Hassan said that the meeting was held in the context of the security challenges facing the country.
Ms. Hassan said that the idea was to start talking about how to reduce tension and how to protect the environment, so that INEC could assess all parts of the country to hold peaceful and legitimate elections in 2023.
“I think that one for this election, the security of the electoral materials, the security of the personnel, the security of the voters are in context and there is actually a problem in the INEC to evaluate all the areas.
“We must point out that this is not just a problem of the INEC, it is a problem of the actors and insecurity is already reigning.
“The challenge we have is how do we conduct elections in the context of this prevailing insecurity. It will be the federal government and other interested parties that intervene.”
Mr. Chris Pycroft, Director of Development at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), said the office was delighted to partner with CDD and provide funding for the event and related activity to promote peaceful and secure elections in 2023.
According to Mr Pycroft, this is one of the top priorities for the UK in Nigeria over the next six months and one of many initiatives in partnership with Nigerian and international stakeholders.
“The stakes have never felt higher. Nigeria faces more challenges than ever in its democratic history in conducting peaceful and secure elections.
“These elections are deeply important not only for Nigeria but also for the African continent and democracy around the world,” he said.
Pycroft said the stakes were higher in terms of the unity and peaceful coexistence of Nigeria’s diverse religious, ethnic and cultural communities.
Adebayo Olukoshi, a professor and election expert at CDD, said Nigeria was facing a number of security problems and ways needed to be found to curb them before the elections.
Mr. Olukoshi said that it was also necessary to understand the various conflicts that were being faced in order to develop a topology that would best address them.
(YAYA)