how far

Omo, toooooooooo far from it. In fact, its about 900000000000000000000000 miles away from it.

Electoral reform: FG approves White Paper on Uwais panel report
From LUCKY NWANKWERE, Abuja
Thursday, March 12, 2009


President Umaru Yar’Adua
Photo: Sun News Publishing
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The Federal Government yesterday formally rejected the Justice Mohammed Uwais-led Electoral Reform Committee’s recommendation on the appointment of the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as it approved the white paper on the electoral reform committee’s report.

The Federal Executive Council at its weekly meeting presided over by President Umaru Yar’Adua adopted the recommendation of the Aondoakaa-led review committee that the president should not hands off the appointment of the INEC boss, hinging its argument on the doctrine of separation of power.

The Electoral Reform Committee had recommended that the National Judicial Council (NJC) should be responsible for the appointment of the board of INEC and those of the three proposed bodies to be established with the Senate’s ratification.

The Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili who briefed the State House correspondents on the outcome of the meeting in the company of her Minister of State, Alhaji Ikra Bilbis, FCT Minister, Alhaji Adamu Aliero and the Presidential Spokesman, Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi said it would amount to a violation of the doctrine of separation of power to ask the judiciary to perform executive functions.

She said council also did not accept the recommendation that election petitions should be concluded within six months after the elections: four months at the tribunal and two months at the appellate court because the current system in which judgments sometimes come after six months presented a better dispensation of justice to the aggrieved.

Key highlights of the recommendation which government said it believed would give much greater credibility and acceptability to future elections in the country are as follows:

INEC COMPOSITION:
The establishment of a new, truly, non-partisan independent and impartial INEC composed of: a chairman, deputy chairman and six persons of unquestionable integrity, one of whom must come from each of the six geo-political zones.

The inclusion of six other nominees comprising one nominee each from the following bodies: Labour; Nigerian Bar Association; Media; National Youth Council; Nigerian Civil Society; and Women Organisations. All the appointments will be subject to Senate confirmation.

CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS
Open Secret Ballot System which allows voters to go into a polling booth to mark their ballots in secrecy and drop them in boxes in the open as well as the accreditation of registered voters prior to the commencement of voting for the purpose of tracking how many people cast their ballots in a polling station.
Other recommendations are the display of voter register prior to elections to enable registered voters, political parties and the electorate generally make claims and objections and the announcement of elections results at all polling centres by presiding officers, duly signed and copies given to accredited agents, the Police and the SSS.

Other measures are:
The scrapping of the State Independent Electoral Commissions so that INEC can conduct all elections in the country, including the local government polls as well as the ban of politicians convicted of violence and thugery during elections, in addition to any other punishment from holding public office for 10 years.

FUNDING OF INEC
The funding of INEC is to be first-line charge on the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation so as to guarantee financial and administrative independence.

INDEPENDENT CANDIDATURE
Government accepts the recommendation that Independent candidates be allowed to contest all elections.

UNBUNDLING OF INEC
Government accepts recommendation to create the following new bodies to handle some of the functions currently performed by INEC:

POLITICAL PARTIES REGISTRATION AND REGULATORY COMMISSION
Establishment of a Political Parties Registration and Regulatory Commission to, among other things, register political parties, monitor their organization and operations and arrange for the annual auditing of accounts.

ELECTORAL OFFENCES COMMISSION
Establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission to, among other things, deter the commission of electoral malpractices, investigate where they occur and prosecute alleged offenders.

CENTRE FOR DEMOCRATIC STUDIES
Establishment of the Centre for Democratic Studies to undertake broad civic and political education for legislators, political office holders, security agencies, political parties and the general public.

TRIBUNALS
The number of judges that sit in tribunal should be reduced from five to three so that more Tribunals can be established per State.

DISQUALIFICATION OF CANDIDATES
Disqualification of candidates fielded for any election should be done on the basis of the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act.

FUNDING POLITICAL PARTIES
For the purpose of transparency and accountability, political parties must publicly disclose to INEC all sources of funding, including donations. Only parties that score a minimum of 5 percent of votes cast will be eligible to receive grants from public funds.

According to Akunyili, FEC decided to forward these conclusions to the Council of State for advice and thereafter, those decisions that require administrative action will be immediately implemented, while those that require amendment of the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act, 2006 or the enactment of new legislation will be forwarded to the National Assembly.

The council had stepped down some issues contained in the white paper on the electoral reform committee’s report for review by Aondoakaa-led committee. It accepted the review committee’s recommendations on the grey areas.


t least he has done a commendable job with the electoral reform,lets hope and pray the legislative tow the honourable path.
1 down 6 to go!!lol

This old men are decieivng the nation.
All this grammer and commitee and WHITE AND BLACK PAPPER is all about more confusing.
NA FROM PAPPER WE GET TOILET ROLL ABA

Mr PRESIDENT.
NIGERIA NO GET LIGHT.
NIGERIA NO GET ROADS
NIGERIA NO GET WATER
NIGERIA NO GET MANY THINGS.

START WITH LIGHT.

Nigerians can be very gullible.So people actually believed this 0 7 point agenda ?

Bros, i agree with u
we are guillible b/cos of our culture.
u see the old idoit in sudan mr basir.it took european to tell Africans he is a crook, people are suffering in dafur and he is holding rally holding a silly stick and gullible african saying he is alright.

AFRICAN WILL NEVER CHANGE UNTIL OUR CULTURE CHANGES, EVEN IF AN OLD MAN IS WRONG HE SHOULD BE TOLD SO.
THAT WHY WE NO FIT CHALLENGE PASTORS FOR AFRICAN ELSE THE CONGREGATION WILL POINT OUT THEIR EXCESSES.
THAT WHY WE NO FIT CHALLENGE OOUR LEADERS ELSE, THE PEOPLE WILL TAKE THEM TO COURT MAKE THEM JUDGE CASE.

LONG LIVE THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC

roflmao 7point smoke screen, declared state of emergency of power aka bait and switch. the later was used to kill the noise being made about the election and its numerous faults