The convener of the National
Peace Committee, Most Rev Bishop Matthew Kukah of the Sokoto Catholic
Archdiocese, has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not
to complain about the lack of resources ahead of the November 11 off-cycle
elections.
Kukah, while speaking on Channels
Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday, said the substantial funds have been
budgeted for the elections and INEC should not be experiencing resource
insufficiency.
“We cannot spend the time in the
classroom; we must graduate to a new class of consciousness. Nigeria must take
full responsibility for how these processes are conducted.
“There is a size of this country
and limited resources but INEC can no longer complain about lack of resources
because we hear of the hundreds of billions that are being spent on INEC,” he
said.
In December 2021, the Commission
said it would require N305 billion to conduct the 2023 general elections.
The required funds were
eventually approved by the National Assembly.
The electoral umpire will also
get an additional N18bn for the conduct of the forthcoming Bayelsa, Imo, and
Kogi governorship elections.
In October, the Minister of
Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, claimed the N18 billion for the
conduct of the Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi governorship elections will be derived
from the N2.1 trillion 2023 supplementary budget.
INEC had introduced biometric
technology and IReV, a Central Database for uploading results in real-time, to
ensure transparency.
The commission acknowledged
unplanned glitches but dismissed claims that the vote was not free and fair.
Many Nigerians on the other hand,
have criticised the technical problems and delays in uploading results, which
they claim allowed opportunities for vote manipulation.
However, Bishop Kukah insists
Nigerians need to take full responsibility for how electoral processes are
conducted while INEC must reach a point where it is not anxious every election
season.
“People must also get to a point
in which INEC will not have anxiety every time they are about to conduct
elections.”
He noted that to pave the way for
a better future, errors of the past must be addressed.
“INEC took the heat; it’s having
a legitimacy crisis; it’s having a confidence and trust crisis. We must also
understand that at least the sins of yesterday have to be cured so that
tomorrow can be better,” he said.
Kukah highlighted that trust is
essential in the conduct of elections and institutions entrusted with this
responsibility should function in a way that commands respect.
“It’s about trust, but we fail to
trust ourselves to deploy trust to institutions and those who run those
institutions, but they must also function in a way and manner that commands
respect,” he said.
He called for greater focus on
national issues and improving institutions in the country in light of the 2023
electoral process.
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