The commentary of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, on the poor quality of elections in local government councils has reinvigorated the need for a reform of the local government system, particularly elections, across the country. Represented by his deputy, Benjamin Kalu, at the National Dialogue on Local Government and Constitution Amendment organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review, the Speaker stated that the recently conducted local polls, where the ruling party won all positions, not only undermined the very essence of democracy but also raised serious concerns about the integrity and functionality of local governance structures.
Mr. Abbas lamented that local governments have become mere appendages of state governments or pawns in the hands of godfathers, who manipulate political outcomes for their gain. According to him, elections characterised by a lack of competitiveness are not merely an embarrassment; but also pose significant threats to our democracy. “This fosters an environment where undesirable elements infiltrate the councils, often lacking the necessary capacity and vision to govern effectively.” Advocating urgent redress of the aberration, he surmised that the subsisting lopsided electoral framework is a mockery of democratic principles.
He substantially echoes the earlier sentiments expressed by Prof. Yakubu Mahmood, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, who described Local Government elections as mere coronation of the ruling party’s candidates. Prof. Mahmood blamed the ineffectiveness, inefficiency and dysfunctionality of State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs) on the state governors. He accused the governors of failing to provide SIECs with the necessary resources, tools, infrastructure and support to work independently and freely.
Local government elections ensure that citizens can elect those who represent them and allow them to participate in governance at the level closest to them. This explains why the Constitution guarantees a democratised local government system and saddles state governments with the exclusive responsibility of organising credible local council elections.
Regrettably, the federating units have failed woefully in this regard because their mode of recruiting grassroots political leaders cannot be termed election properly so-called.
Based on ensuing events, it is as sure as night follows day that every local council elective seat will be clinched by the ruling party or the preferred party of the incumbent governor of the given state. The entire process has become predictable, undemocratic, imbalanced, questionable, and a reflection of the whims of state governors rather than the people’s will.
Admittedly, Nigeria’s electoral and election operations have been defective, hence shoddy elections are not peculiar to local council polls. The country’s electoral integrity (or the lack of the same) has constantly been a subject of intense controversy over the years. There is no post-independence general election result that has been of general acceptance. To this end, experts have queried whether INEC (given its staggering record of litigious elections) has the moral right to indict another electoral body. In the same vein, can beneficiaries of judicialised elections cast stones?
Whilst the elections conducted by INEC are often tainted with allegations of irregularity, the commission’s performance appears more reasonable than that of SIECs. What obtains at the local government level is devoid of electoral complexion – it is at best selection, coronation, or imposition of preferred candidates of the ruling party. Also, INEC is consistently making concerted efforts to improve the national electoral process; the introduction of the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) is a recent example. On the other hand, the fetters of State Emperors on SIECs have rendered the latter non-functional to the detriment of the ordinary citizens.
The issue of credible elections at the councils’ level is a national concern because when electoral standards are lowered below the bare minimum, it is the people who suffer. Therefore, INEC has justifiable reason to be alarmed by the shambolic elections being conducted by SIECs. The duty to operate a functional local council rests squarely with the state. Sadly, governors have refused to build strong local government systems for their respective states for political gains. By constantly meddling in local government elections, they have denied their people qualitative representation at the grassroots tier of government. This conduct poses an existential threat to local government administration.
In this circumstance, state governments should limit their incursion into the affairs of SIECs to improve the electoral framework. It is recommended that the local polls should be digitised to minimise the fraud associated with the analogue process. Under Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s leadership, Kaduna State successfully deployed Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) in 2018 and 2021 local government polls. Voters commended the e-voting as perfect, seamless, fast, and transparent. Strangely, the current government of the state has reverted to the corrupt-laden manual system. What retrogression!
Recently, the Federal Government has repeatedly demonstrated interest in establishing direct relationships with local government councils. In its instance, the Supreme Court stripped states of their financial control over local government funds. Presently, there is a bill in the Senate to establish a Local Government Independent Electoral Commission. The proposed body will supplant SIECs and be in charge of conducting elections for all the local governments in the country. Accordingly, if the states are determined to maintain sole control of the management and administration of local government councils, they must urgently reform and strengthen their respective local government electoral systems.
State governments must respect the right of the electorate to elect their local leaders and return electoral power to the people. Similarly, they should empower SIECs and put the latter in a position where they can independently conduct credible and transparent elections. As the saying goes, “When the hedge is broken, the serpent will bite.” Although President Bola Tinubu has debunked any notion of the federal government seeking to usurp the powers of states on local governments or to leverage the lapses of state governments to foster direct relationships with Local Government Councils., it is imperative for the states to take their fate in their hands and properly utilise their constitutional powers on local governments. Only then can they avert a major setback to Nigeria’s federalism.
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