President Goodluck Jonathan announced in Nice, France, that he has finalised a list of those he believes are credible, competent and non-partisan Nigerians who will be nominated to serve as Chairman and electoral commissioners in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Speaking at meeting with Nigerians living in France on Sunday, President Jonathan said that his nominees for the Chairmanship of INEC and INEC Commissioners will be made public next week after presentation to members of the National Council of State.
The President told the gathering that the person he has chosen to head INEC is a person he believes Nigerians can rely upon to conduct very credible elections in 2011. He added that he had never met the nominee in person, but knew him well by reputation to be an incorruptible Nigerian who can never be influenced to manipulate election results to favour any party.
He said that after the publication of the names of his intended nominees to fill existing vacancies in INEC, the government will listen to the views of Nigerians on their suitability or otherwise, and withdraw anyone against whom a credible objection is raised.
“What I can promise Nigerians is that we will do everything possible to conduct credible elections. New laws will help us. We must develop a system of electing credible leaders. That will be the beginning of real development for our country. Without the ability to elect credible leaders, all our talk about rapid development will be a waste of time. We cannot have good governance without a good electoral system that ensures that elections are free, fair and credible,” President Jonathan said.
He explained that his choice of individuals to lead INEC into the 2011 elections was hinged on his believe that the human factor was critical to the conduct of credible elections in Nigeria.
President Jonathan said that while he will continue to work with the National Assembly to achieve necessary amendments to the constitution and electoral laws, he believed that credible elections could be conducted even with existing laws “if followed to the letter and people are ready to do what is right”.
“It’s all about the human factor,” he said, adding that his Administration will fully support the establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission to ensure that people do not escape punishment after committing electoral offences with impunity
Responding to questions , the President said that he could not promise that Nigerians in Diaspora will be able to vote abroad in the 2011 elections as his primary focus was on ensuring credible elections within the country. He said, however, that the government would explore the possibility of facilitating registration of Nigerians abroad who wished to come home to vote.
“What we promise for 2011 is one man, one vote and we will make sure that the votes count,” President Jonathan said.
He also said that while there were doubts as to whether existing infrastructure in Nigeria could support an electronic voting system, the new leadership of INEC will have a free hand to decide if it will use such a system for the 2011 elections.
That is indeed the beginning of development. Best wishes Nigeria