The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the National Peace Committee (NPC) have declared that the 2027 General Elections will be critical to Nigeria’s democratic experience.
Speaking at an NPC engagement with electoral stakeholders tagged ‘Briefing and Presentation of the Annotations to the Peace Accord’, on Monday in Abuja, the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan, noted that Nigeria is at a “very critical stage” in its democratic evolution, urging political actors to abandon the “politics of power” and embrace people-centred governance.
According to the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan, Nigeria’s electoral landscape remains diverse, highly complicated, and extremely competitive
Amupitan said that since independence, politics had often been pursued in ways that undermined national development.
He said, “The problem we have had since independence is that we have been involved in politics, but let me say politics in the wrong way. We play the politics of power as against the politics of the people.
“At this crucial stage of development, when we should be breaking the level of underdevelopment and getting counted among developed nations, we still find ourselves bogged down by issues that ought to have been muted years ago.”
According to Amupitan, this misplaced political focus has hindered national development and kept the country from advancing alongside its global peers.
He described the recurring electoral challenges as “unfortunate monsters” that should be confronted decisively to safeguard democracy.
He stressed that democracy and development are interconnected, noting that countries once behind Nigeria economically have progressed by strengthening democratic institutions.
The INEC chairman revealed that the commission was reviewing its regulations to improve electoral processes ahead of 2027.
He disclosed plans to introduce Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping of polling units and develop improved voter interaction platforms.
According to him, INEC is working to sanitise the voter’s registers by eliminating duplicate entries and removing deceased persons and vowed to continue to collaborate with law enforcement agencies to combat vote buying among others.
In his remark, the NPC Chairman, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, represented by the NPC Convener, Bishop Mathew Kukah, acknowledged growing scepticism about politicians’ commitment to the Peace Accord.
The engagement was organised by the NPC in collaboration with The Kukah Centre, with additional support from the European Union.
GIK/APA
