Poor kufour . He does not understand Nigerian political leaders and their deciet, insincerity and double-speak. Kufour does not realise that the President (GEJ) talking of free and fair elections is the same individual openly working for the re-election of candidates who have being indicted as having gained their mandate through election rigging . Jonathan , if he is the right President for nigeria, should be the main actor fighting for the automatic punishment and outright disqualification of election riggers[b] in a nation decimated from the actions of electoral usurpers[/b]. Instead he works for their re-election while his Party men (Mark and Bankole) are actually working to introduce laws that will kill the powers of the courts , as the last resort to electoral fairness for Nigerians, to remove election riggers from office . Nigerian politics must seem like an abberation  to most non-Nigerians.

http://weekly.dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5508:inec-to-adopt-modified-open-ballot-voting-for-april-polls-kufour-team-wants-tougher-sanctions-for-electoral-offenders-&catid=40:cover-stories&Itemid=26

INEC to adopt modified open ballot voting for April polls …Kufour team wants tougher sanctions for electoral offenders .
Saturday, 05 March 2011 00:00 Abbas Jimoh .10

The International Republican Institute (IRI) Vice President, Dan Fisk, former Ghanaian President John Kufuor & Martin Kimani of the Michael Ansari African Centre, briefing newsmen on their findings of the pre-election assessment mission to Nigeria for the April polls
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will use the Modified Open Ballot System of voting for the coming April general elections to reduce multiple voting and other fraud on election day. This is contained in the report of the international pre-election assessment delegation to Nigeria on the bill of the International Republican Institute (IRI), led by former President John Kufuor of Ghana to assess the progress of preparations, logistics and the overall environment for Nigeria’s upcoming general elections.


The report read by Paul Fagan, Regional Director of IRI’s Africa division based in Washington, DC, yesterday in Lagos, also recommend stiffer penalties for electoral offenders, saying there should be no tolerance for those who engage in violence.

“The delegation was advised that the “modified open ballot system” would be used for the 2011 elections in an attempt to reduce multiple voting and other fraud on Election Day. This is a significant change from the system used in 2007. It is recommended that there be vigorous and extensive voter education between now and election day to emphasize this change,” Fagan reads.

The delegation noted that previously election Offenses have gone unpunished in Nigeria, said, “The manipulation of youth to perpetrate violence on behalf of political actors continues to be a significant threat to the integrity of the electoral process. For the benefit of the April elections, as well as the long term health of Nigerian democracy, it is recommended that those who engage in election-related violence in 2011 be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. There should be no tolerance for those who engage in violence.

“In order to send a forceful message that Nigeria is serious about remedying this history and promoting respect for the law, the appropriate authorities should take the necessary legal actions to prosecute individuals, including election officials, flouting the election law and committing such offenses.”

On the deluge of election-related court injunctions, the delegation advocated for the establishment of an administrative review process of petitions before they reach the court. The statement said that this will be aimed at determining whether they are frivolous or would materially affect the outcome of an election and thus merit judicial hearing.

The delegation also recommended that, for these April elections, Nigerians should only refer electoral disputes to the courts only after all other means of resolution have been exhausted.

Other members of the delegation are: Dan Fisk, IRI’s Vice President for Policy and Strategic Planning; Charles Lasham, an experienced elections consultant who served previously as Nigeria Country Director for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems; and Martin Kimani, Director of the Michael S. Ansari Africa Center at the Atlantic Council.

The rest are: Fernand Julien Gauze, Secretary General for the Convention of Ivorian Civil Society, the National Democratic Institute; Paul Fagan, Regional Director of IRI’s Africa division based in Washington, DC and Dr. Mourtada Deme.