A forum of chairmen of 55 political parties has suggested ways to end thuggery in the country’s electoral system, harping mostly on amendment of the electoral Act.
The forum however faulted call by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to resign over statements on the efficacy of the Smart Card Reader by two INEC Commissioners.
Chairman of National Unity Party (NUP), who doubles as chairman of the Forum, Chief Perry Opara, in a statement, said the amendment of the Electoral Act would address some challenges bedevilling the electoral system.
“We call on all Nigerians to lend their voice and put pressure on their representatives in both chambers of the National Assembly to urgently pass the Electoral Act Amendment Bill so we can have an electronic transmission of votes, electronic transmission of accreditation figures from the card reader and possibly electronic voting so that thugs will not have a role in our electoral system since our security agencies have failed woefully to stop them from their unpatriotic trade,” they said.
On the call for INEC boss’s resignation, he said the PDP cannot be crying wolf when it earlier celebrated the judgements which described the card readers as victory for democracy.
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Opara said the PDP should enjoin its members in the National Assembly to lead the agitation for legislative electoral reform and stop playing to the gallery.
He said the Smart Card Readers’ efficacy had been politically and judicially neutralized, arguing that was largely done by members of the PDP who argued before the Supreme Court against its relevance in relation to the voter register.
The party chairmen argued that PDP did not reform the electoral system during its 16 years in power and should therefore cover its face in shame.
“The position of the Supreme Court which for now is the law makes the Voter Register the final proof of the accreditation of voters, hence, making the record of the card reader inadmissible in court as proof of accreditation.
“The meaning of this is that even when only a few people turn out at three polling units on election day, thugs can hijack the materials, record humongous figures and are only required to tick the voters register and they are home and dry.
PDP celebrated this position of the Supreme Court and should just keep quiet for now,” they said.
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