As the Independent National Commission prepares for the Edo and Ondo elections, the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has charged the commission with remaining neutral in all dealings that will lead to the election of a new governor in the state.
The national chairman of IPAC, Yusuf Danielle, made the charge on Thursday while speaking at the meeting of INEC and political parties in Abuja at the commission’s headquarters.
He noted that election periods are moments when political parties and their leaders restore confidence in the electoral process by ensuring the sanity of balloting and respecting the people’s will and decisions.
He further noted that the country’s democracy has lasted for 25 years, which calls for a better electoral process.
According to him, the governorship elections to be conducted in Edo state will be a test for the other election, which will be conducted in Ondo state on the 16th of November 2024. He noted that the outcome of the elections will further tell the steps taken for future elections in the country.
He charged INEC to justify the confidence the citizens have in them. He noted that the integrity of INEC is at stake in the conduct of the elections. The conduct of free, fair, credible, transparent, inclusive and peaceful elections is the only way to retain the trust of the citizens, and he also claimed if the election is successful, it will increase trust and confidence in the electoral body through improved voter turnout.
Speaking for candidates and political parties, the council urged them to maintain an issue-based campaign in the build-up to the elections, which will help unite the people and foster development in the states and communities.
The chairman further noted that the time for the campaigns was not a moment for the campaigns of bitterness, which would affect the years of democracy enjoyed in the country. He told the party members that the current period is a good moment to change from the old ways of politics of bitterness the results to violence. He charged them to advance the practice of democracy.
He clarified that all individuals and party members in the country are responsible for improving democracy.
Yusuf noted that practising and respecting internal democracy is the best way to enhance good representation in the country. He charged the members of the council to respect the constitution of their various political parties, explaining that political leaders should live and lead by example.
He cited party members’ failure to comply with the parties’ constitutions as the root cause of the problems and crises seen among political parties, which result in factionalizations, litigations, and leadership disagreements.
He charged the members of the political parties to be agents of advanced democracy rather than being the problem. He explained that the blaming of the electoral body, security agencies, and the judiciary was easy, but political leaders failed to comply with the provisions of their political party constitution.
He calls on everyone to put behind them every act that goes against the internal democracy of the political party.
