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| INEC Holds National Review of the 2019 General Elections :Engagement with Political Parties on the 1st of July 2019. INEC Chairman Professor Mahmud Yakubu, Barrister Festus Okoye and other Top Brass of INEC |
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| H.E. Prince Frank Ukonga - DA-Democratic Alternative National Chairman and Rev Olusegun Peters- National Chairman of DPC at the National Review of the 2019 Meeting held at Sheraton Hotel Abuja on the 1st of July 2019 |
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| IPAC Chairman High Chief Peter Ameh and other Top INEC Brass |
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| H.E. Prince Frank Ukonga -National Chairman DA -Democratic Alternative with Hon Razak Eyiowuawi -National Chairman PPA and Hon Ademola. at the National Review meeting of 2019 election |
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| INEC Chairman Professor Mahmood Yakubu Addressing National Chairmen of Political Parties at the National Review Summit of 2019 election in Abuja. |
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| IPAC Chairman High Chief Peter Ameh addressing all Political Parties Chairmen and other stakeholders at the National Review summit of 2019 election held at the Sheraton Holtel Abuja |
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| INEC Secretary addressing all the Political Parities Chairmen at the National Review Summit of the 2019 election held at the Sheraton Hotel Abuja |
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| Dr Tanko Yinusa National Chairman of the NCP at the meeting of the Review of the 2019 election in Sheraton Hotel Abuja |
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| INEC CHAIRMAN AND TOP BRASS OF INEC AT THE NATIONAL REVIEW OF THE 2019 ELECTIONS HELD IN SHERATON HOTEL ABUJA, |
The 2019 Elections has come and gone but the imperatives of the review of the elections and other matters arising demand for a National Summit of the actors and stakeholders to review the conduct of the 2019 elections with a focus on discussing on the conducts of the elections and how to improve on future elections in the Nigerian Sovereignty.
Therefore a stakeholders Summit with the National Chairmen and Secretaries of Political Parties was called at the auspices of INEC to ruminate and share experiences on the 1st of July 2019 in Sheraton Hotel.
It was like a great day of reunion among all stakeholders that was warmly attended by National Chairmen and Secretaries of the 91 political parties in Nigeria and top brass of INEC led by the National INEC Chairman Professor Mahmood Yakubu and in attendance were all the National INEC Commissioners.
The Political Parties were led into the all important meeting by the National Chairman of IPAC High Chief Peter Ameh and other Chairmen that attended the meeting includes- the National Chairman of Democratic Alternative H.E. Prince Frank Ukonga, National Chairman of the APGA- Chief Oye, the PDP and APC were represented,Chairman of the Labour Party Alhaji Salam, Chairman of the NCP Dr Tanko Yinusa, Chairman of the BNPP- Professor Godwill Nnaji, Chairman of WTPN- Professor Peter Nwagu and many others.
Among the vexing issues that were discussed includes the issues of electoral malpractices, rigging, vote buying and selling, safety of INEC Staff , the need to amend the constitution to recognize electronic transmission of data, the need to respect the 35% women inclusion in politics,party finances and campaigns, Party audited reports, the upcoming Baylesa and Kogi Elections,issues of Party Registrations and De -registrations etc
All the Political parties vehemently rejected the issue of Party De registration voiced out through the IPAC Chairman High Chief Pater Ameh and rather called for a proper review of the guidelines for registration of new parties to be more stringent. He also harped on the need to expand the membership of the National and states assemblies through PR-Proportional representation.
He blasted the governors conducting Local government elections and the unhealthy democratic practice of the party of the incumbent governors winning all the Local government chairmanship and councellorship seats in their respective states as a hindrance to the genuine tenets of multi party democracy .
He observed that the work load of INEC is enormous and there is the urgent need to unbound INEC into three separates Organizations so that INEC can concentrate on the conduct of elections solely. He advised that all state electoral bodies be collapsed into INEC so as to invent one formidable electoral body that would conduct both National and state local government elections and all the political parties chairmen applauded this ingenuity.
He appealed to all Nigerians to be patient with political parties as most of the parties were newly registered and they should give them time to mature and begin to win. You cannot born a child today and expect the child to grow to maturity same day and begin to achieves what experienced men would do.it is un ethical and unnatural, he concluded.
In his contributions to the discuss H.E. Prince Frank Ukonga the National Chairman of DA-Democratic Alternative Party and the Director of Strategy IPAC presented a dissertation on the Topic of Registration and De -Registration of Political parties based on global outlook of international standered Practice. He announced on the floor that no country in the entire world has ever de registered registered Political parties since the advent of Democracy over 1500 year ago.
He reiterated in the R& D that Political Parties are allowed in all Democracies to die a natural death of becoming defunct or go into merger with others to become strong and formidable .. and that would be the entropy of Nigerian political parties. He said that the research showed that:
1] Nigeria with a population of over 200 million peoples with Registered 91 political parties and GNP of $1.2 trillion dollars is rather portable when compared with the other countries of the world.
2] He said that Senegal has 250 political parties to a population of 15 million peoples and a GNP of $16 Billion Dollars,
3]South Africa has 560 political parties with a population of 40 million peoples and GNP of $743 Billion Dollars,
4] India has 2075 political parties with a population of 1.3 billion and GNP of 9.6 Trillion,
5] Russia has 98 political parties with a population of 143 million peoples with GNP of $4.5 trillion Dollars,
6]Benin Republic has 300 political parties with a population of 11 million peoples and a GNP of $9.3 Billion[less than the population of Lagos State and GNP of Mushin LGA in Lagos state],
7] Britain/UK has 492 political parties to a population of 48 Million peoples and a GNP of $2.6 trillion Dollars,
8]USA has over 1200 political parties to a population 325 million peoples and GNP of $5.3 trillion Dollars,
9]Gambia has 96 political parties to a population of 2.4 million peoples[less than the population of the smallest state in Nigeria]with a GNP of $1.4 Dollars [less than the GNP of most Local government councils in Nigeria],
10]Ethiopia has 78 political parties with a GDP of $88 billion dollars{lower than the GDP of Lagos State estimated as $210 billion Dollars as at 2018],
11]Brazil has 32 political parties but as soon as Nigeria registered 23 political parties in August 2018 last year Brazil copied Nigeria to register new 20 political parties to have currently 52 political parties and they want to register more parties to open up the political space. Population of Brazil is 214 million and the GNP of Brazil is $445 Billion Dollars{Just about the size of the GNP of South West of Nigeria]
12]Argentina: Argentina has 75 political parties to a population of 45 million peoples and a GNP of
$621 billion Dollars.
13]Togo: Togo has 38 political parties to a population of 7.9 million peoples[Just about the population estimate of Kano State and a GNP of $11 Billion Dollars{ Just about the GNP of Edo state]
14]Germany: Germany has 86 political parties to a population of 83 million people and a GNP of $3.7 Billion Dollars
15]Mexico : Mexico has 270 political parties to a population of 132 million peoples and GNP of $1.2 Trillion Dollars[Just about the size of Nigeria's GNP]
16] France: France has 62 political parties to a population of 66.9 million peoples and a GNP $2.8 Trillion Dollars
17] Turkey has 76 political parties to a population of 82 million peoples and a GNP of $ 840 Billion Dollars
18]Canada: Canada has 120 political parties to a population of 37 million peoples and a GNP of $1.6 Trillion Dollars.
19]Netherlands: Netherlands has 60 political parties to a population of 17 million peoples and a GNP of $236 Billion Dollars
20] Sweden: Sweden has 35 political parties to a population of of 10 million peoples and a GNP of $ 559 billion Dollars/
The research of H.E. Prince Frank Ukonga as he revealed at the meeting of all chairmen of political parties of Nigeria at the Summit to review the 2019 elections showed the following observation and conclusion that is scientific, empirical and reliable as a benchmark to adjudge the Nigerian emerging democratic dispensation.
a] Number of Political Parties: that the number of political parties in Nigeria when compared to other Nations as to our population, tribal spread of over 250 tribes , GNP and significance 91 political parties is too small for Nigeria and he recommends 200 political parties for Nigeria.
b] Registration and De registration of Political Parties: He recommended that INEC should not de register political parties as no Nation in the entire world since the advent of democracy had ever de registered legally registered political parties by observation from the international standered practices as it would negate the UN , AU and ECOWAS fundamental grand norm of the rights of Association and belonging to whatever party of choice as a citizen of a polity. Which is a higher and Superior law to the shoddy constitutional amendment by the Senate of the 8th Republic giving INEC a Greek gift that they can de register political parties.It would not stand the inquisition of a respectable , responsible jurisprudence.The panacea is not to register more political parties or make the registration very stringent.
c]Funding:Nigerian government does not fund political parties. All political parties in Nigeria are self funded despite the fact that they are public institutions this is contrary to what obtains in all the Countries of the world . In most countries political parties are supported financially by the government through grands and many other private and public institutions donate to political parties which does not obtain in Nigeria. Whence it is recommended that the government , Senate etc make provision of grants and funds for political parties to pay office rents and staff salaries and run the parties as formidable public institutions as it obtains all over the world.
d]Curbing too many Candidates on the ballot through Alliances: That the Nigeria electoral Act be amended to recognize alliances among political parties to be allowed to present consensus candidate and consensus political party platform on which to run. Till now the Nigerian electoral Act has no provision for this. In 2019 election 45 political Parties formed an alliance called the CUPP to present one consensus candidate and one party for the presidential election but the electoral act did not allow. Likewise another coalition of 35 parties endorsed another presidential candidate. If the electoral act has allowed the number of candidates for the 2019 presidential election would not be more than 5 candidates on the ballot instead of the 73 candidates that contested the 2019 presidential polls.
e]The constitutional provision of mandatory winning seats in election as to adjudge the viability and continuous existence of political parties is a faulty reducio de absudum; this now causing the phenomenon of acute competition among political parties as in Do or die syndrome: this is the remote cause of rigging , vote buying and selling , violence and many other electoral offenses.In other democracies studied by the R&D such draconian laws do not exist.In many democracies many parties do not field candidates for elections but the exist and perform other oversight functions that are highly invaluable to the society.
f] Patience and Time Frame For maturity of Political Parties: The R&D Revealed that Nigerians does not have patience for political parties to mature and this need a time frame, nurturing, funding and proper administration.We are always in a hurry to get quick results and this would act as albatross in the democratic exercise of the polity. In other democracies there is the understanding that a Political party is an organic phenomenology, just like a living human being go through the birth stage, childhood, youthful and adult stages and also old age and death..But in Nigeria's emerging democracy this lacuna may be counter productive and would adversely affect the growth of democracy if we continue to act with brazen philosophy that all political parties should just start winning and producing fantastic results from day one of registration. This is unnatural.For Example the PRP was de registered some years ago for not winning a seat in an election , it came back through court and in 2019 election it won 2 legislative seats.
Summary:There are many other points in the R&D that would be useful to jockey the Nigeria Democratic dispensation to greater heights but these are few important notations that demand urgent perusals.Gratitude.
