Young leaders convened at the Bayero University Kano on Friday for a crucial stakeholders’ discourse where they advocated for substantial changes to Nigeria’s electoral system.
The youths, under the aegis of Gidan Yanci Fellowship Programme, convened the meeting with the title “Stakeholders Meeting on Constitutional Review,” in response to the National Assembly’s call for public input on revising the 1999 Constitution.
Mr. Sadiq Mustapha, Programme Lead of Gidan Yanci, emphasising the pivotal role of public engagement in the constitutional review process, urged Nigerians to actively contribute their perspectives.
He said the call for memoranda by the National Assembly presents an avenue for all Nigerians to be involved and called on Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to make contribution to the constitutional review.
Participants at the meeting examined the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, identifying critical deficiencies that demand urgent attention.
Discussions also centered on areas requiring improvement including campaign finance regulations, electoral offenses, technological integration, and the autonomy of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The youth group identified lack of clear regulations governing online campaign expenditure which it noted to leave room for manipulation as issue of particular interest.
Gidan Yanci also spotted the ambiguities surrounding the definition of “foreign donations” as raising red flags with a call for precise delineations within the legislation.
Moreover, participants expressed apprehensions regarding the adequacy of penalties for electoral malpractices such as vote-buying, thereby urging for stringent enforcement of punitive measures on electoral offenders.
The discrepancy in legal validity between electronically transmitted results and traditional paper ballots emerged as a contentious issue, with stakeholders emphasizing the need for clarity to avert potential disputes.
In addition to identifying shortcomings, participants proposed pragmatic solutions to fortify the electoral framework by advocating stricter campaign finance regulations aimed at fostering transparency and equitable spending limits across all candidates, with a special focus on marginalised demographics such as women, youth, and persons with disabilities (PWDs).
Proposals also included reforms to the appointment process of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, with calls for judicial oversight to enhance transparency to mitigate political interference.
Gidan Yanci also identified the establishment of specialised courts dedicated to expeditiously resolving electoral disputes as a crucial step towards ensuring judicial efficacy.
Participants further backed the calls for legislated quotas mandating reserved political seats for women and PWDs at both national and state levels as an important step towards fostering an inclusive political landscape.
The Gidan Yanci Fellows also expressed optimism regarding the receptiveness of the National Assembly’s Constitution Review Committee to the input garnered from stakeholders and urged all Nigerians to actively engage in the ongoing discourse by rallying collective efforts towards cultivating a more resilient, transparent, and inclusive electoral framework for the collective benefit of all citizens.