INEC ready to seek legal action against peddlers of false allegations

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it is reviewing allegations made against the commission during the 2019 general elections with a view to determining whether legal action should be taken against those responsible.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner in Enugu State, Dr. Emeka Ononamadu, disclosed this on Tuesday during a post-election media briefing at the INEC office in Independent Layout, Enugu.

Ononamadu warned that the commission would no longer tolerate what he described as reckless and unsubstantiated allegations capable of damaging the credibility of the electoral process and the reputation of INEC officials.

According to him, some political groups attempted to discredit INEC, security agencies and the Central Bank of Nigeria during the elections by making allegations that were not supported by evidence.

He said the commission was examining some of the claims to determine whether those responsible should be challenged in court.

“I am studying those allegations for the possibility of seeking legal redress because it is not only politicians who can take INEC to court,” he said.

Ononamadu stressed that INEC and its officials also had reputations to protect and would not allow individuals to make damaging accusations without providing evidence.

He said the commission was moving towards a situation where people would be held accountable for statements that could undermine public confidence in elections and democratic institutions.

The REC also commended residents, political parties, security agencies and other stakeholders in Enugu State for the peaceful manner in which the elections were conducted.

He said the level of political maturity demonstrated in the state made the work of election officials easier compared with experiences reported in some other parts of the country.

According to him, the peaceful conduct of the elections showed that democracy was gradually becoming more firmly established in Enugu State, and he expressed hope that similar behaviour would be adopted elsewhere in Nigeria.

Ononamadu, however, expressed concern about the low level of voter participation recorded during both the presidential and governorship elections.

He said that although INEC experienced some logistical challenges during the presidential election, the commission addressed those problems before the governorship and State House of Assembly elections.

According to him, Enugu became one of the states where all 4,145 polling locations were ready to commence electoral activities before 8 a.m. during the governorship election.

Despite the improvement in logistics, he said voter turnout remained disappointing.

Ononamadu noted that fewer than 500,000 people voted despite the state having about 1.9 million registered voters and approximately 1.7 million people who had collected their Permanent Voter Cards.

He said INEC had fulfilled its commitment to conduct the elections in Enugu State and urged residents, observers and other stakeholders to objectively assess the commission’s performance.

The REC acknowledged that the electoral process faced several challenges, including factors outside INEC’s direct control, but maintained that the commission had made efforts to improve its performance between the presidential and governorship elections.

He called for a fair assessment of INEC’s conduct and said lessons from the 2019 elections would be important in improving future electoral exercises.