Buhari, Tinubu ask Nigerians to defend votes

Friday, 11 June 2010 00:00
•Group kicks over constitutional amendments
FORMER Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, has tasked Nigerians on the need to “stand up and be counted” in the 2011 election if they are to sustain true democratic principle in Nigeria in continuation of the June 12 struggle.
Similarly, erstwhile Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, has reiterated that a credible 2011 election would hinge on electoral reforms, credible voter’s register and the people’s will for sovereignty.
Burahi and Tinubu spoke alongside others yesterday during the 17th anniversary of the June 12, 1993 presidential elections organised by the Independent Newspaper in Lagos.
Meanwhile, a non-governmental organisation, the Electoral Reforms Network (ERN), has kicked against some provisions of the amended constitution and called on the state assemblies to take a second look at them before endorsing the document.
In a position paper, South-South Coordinator, ERN, Excellence Uso, who led his team on a visit to the Cross River House of Assembly Committee on Judiciary, Public Matters, Ethics and Human Rights, opposed the position of the National Assembly relating to the power to appoint National Commissioners of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

He said: “The amendment made to Paragraph 14 of the third schedule to the Constitution does not accord with the views of majority of the Nigerian people, especially those of us from civil society. We believe 
that the National Judicial Council should be given the responsibility to ensure quality control in the appointment of the National Commissioners of INEC. It does not matter whether the ultimate appointment is made by the Council of State or the President.
“While the nomination of the Resident Electoral Commissioners by the President and their confirmation by the Senate is a progressive addition, it would be better if the Senate had taken a careful look at the report of the Electoral Reform Committee wherein it was proposed that Resident Electoral Commissioners should be re-designated as Directors of Elections and must be career officers trained and posted to serve in states other than their own.

“We also believe that the membership of the board of INEC will respond better to the challenges of the electoral process if it is broadened to accommodate civil society groups, professional associations and women’s groups.”


Buhari, who chaired the June 12 anniversary event, said: “I want to assure you that unless we are serious about democracy in Nigeria and unless we stabilise democracy, we are wasting our future and prospect of development away.
“It is up to Nigerians to rise up and mobilise themselves next year, to insist on an credible electoral system and political groups in 2011, to ensure that elections are free, fair and credible.
“I assure you that you are not going to get the much desired development and infrastructure unless you put in power the people you have confidence in and are trustworthy to deliver.”
In his lecture titled: “Between June 12, 1993 and May 29, 2011: The Obligation of Electoral Reforms,” Tinubu observed that June 12, 1993 is “a date forever” as it marked the nation’s struggle for freedom, equity and justice.
He added: “Without electoral reforms, we are all working towards consolidating, elaborating and providing democracy for a grand fall in 2011. Going to election in 2011 without electoral reforms will amount to handing over of our country to eternal colonialists.
“Let me state categorically that against the backdrop of our national experience, electoral reform is not a law. It is a fundamental authority. I will say that electoral reform is a task that must be done.
“I have also added that the year 2011 elections will determine whether we will have the stable democracy, the unity of free and fair election. To do that, we have to first trash the rubbish we have as voter’s register. We do not have the voter’s register that has everyone in this country on it.”