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The Accord Party has emphasized the necessity for the National Assembly to eliminate the State Independent Electoral Commission in order to uphold the integrity of grassroots elections.
During an interview, the party's chairman, Dele Oladeji, expressed this view while discussing the local government elections that took place in Lagos on Saturday.
Oladeji pointed out that electoral commissions do not possess genuine independence, and abolishing them would allow the people's will to prevail in local elections.
He suggested that the responsibilities of the State Independent Electoral Commission should be handed over to the Independent National Election Commission to strengthen democracy and encourage active political participation at the local level.
He stated, “Nigerians are eager for improved elections, but when the referee is biased, there is little they can do, and a lack of trust in the process leads to apathy.” Furthermore, he criticized state electoral commissions as lacking independence, citing LASIEC as an example.
He argued that if true democracy is desired at the grassroots level, INEC should take over the management of state elections.
Oladeji lamented that the recent local government election in the state was not commendable, describing the preparations as chaotic and highlighting that many opposition candidates were denied their right to participate by the commission.
He dismissed the argument that INEC would be overwhelmed if tasked with conducting local government elections, calling it a rationale against progress. While acknowledging that INEC is not flawless in national elections, he affirmed that assigning them the task of managing local elections would foster confidence among political stakeholders and enhance grassroots governance.
“They will not be overwhelmed; that is a falsehood. INEC has been operational for a considerable period and has refined its processes.
INEC can competently and effectively oversee local government elections, similar to how they conduct state and national elections,” he asserted.
Regarding Saturday's elections, Oladeji criticized the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission for flawed procedures, raising significant doubts about the election’s legitimacy.
He asserted, “The election cannot be deemed free and fair; the primary blame falls on the electoral commission. It is not fair because the methodology was incorrect—there is no way to derive the correct outcome.”
He further explained that when candidates are properly nominated by a political party but are disenfranchised by the electoral authority, and when candidates are unsure of their presence on the ballot until election day, the election cannot be considered credible.
He noted that such discrepancies were evident and that the election lacked credibility.
He stated that LASIEC could benefit from learning from INEC in order to conduct acceptable elections and achieve credible outcomes.
“LASIEC should take a page from INEC for better efficiency and transparency,” he added. A total of fifteen political parties took part in the recent local government election in the state.
