The House of Representatives on Sunday raised concerns over the 2015 general elections, saying that adequate funding for the Independent National Electoral Commission and security would determine the credibility of the polls.
The House Committee on Electoral Matters said it had resolved to summon the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega, to brief the lawmakers on the preparedness of the commission to conduct the poll.
Chairman of the committee, Mr. Jerry Manwe, who spoke exclusively with our correspondent, said while Nigerians expected INEC to conduct a credible poll, they were not asking questions about the funding available to the commission and the “disturbing insecurity situation in parts of the country.”
He explained that the timing of the proposed meeting with Jega was appropriate, particularly at a period the National Assembly would be considering the 2015 budget.
Manwe stated, “We expect a credible, free and fair poll ordinarily, but this will again depend on funding for INEC and security.
“My committee will summon Jega to speak with us on the level of preparedness for the elections. Jega has to come and meet with the committee because there are sensitive issues we have to look at, one of them is insecurity.
“Funding and security play a role in the credibility of the poll; so, we will have to look at all this with the INEC chairman.”
Lawmakers are at the moment observing the Christmas and New Year break, with a resumption date fixed for January 13.
In June, the House had raised the alarm over alleged shortfall in funding for INEC, especially for the 2015 poll.
After going through the proposals for the 2014 budget, the committee said it found out that out of N120bn the commission proposed for the 2015 poll, the Budget Office of the Federation only made a provision for N45bn.
The committee noted at the time that the approved N45bn left a balance of about N75bn.
“Out of the N120bn that INEC proposed, only N45bn was given to the commission by government. It means that the commission is short of a huge difference of N75bn. As the committee on electoral matters, our work is to alert the relevant authorities on our findings and the implications for the 2015 elections,” the committee had warned in June.
Manwe expressed doubts on Sunday that the situation would have improved remarkably. Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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