Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called for stringent electoral reforms to prohibit incumbents from using public funds for partisan purposes.
Delivering a paper as part of the public lecture series of the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan in Ibadan on Wednesday, Atiku said incumbents seeking re-election must use their own resources to achieve such ambition instead of taking advantage of their access to state funds.
He also recommended a change in the manner of the appointment and tenure of the chairman and commissioners of the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC). According to him, this change might help to dilute the role and control by sitting presidents.
On funding, he said INEC should be less dependent on the government in power. Instead, he recommended that the funding should come from consolidated revenue fund to protect INEC’s independence.
He also called for effective monitoring of political parties by INEC to ensure they conform to the provisions of the electoral laws.
He explained that INEC should be empowered to monitor political parties “for the next 15 or 20 years to ensure they obey the laws of the land, including their own constitutions and guidelines.”
Atiku also reiterated his previous position that anyone whose election is being challenged in courts, should not be allowed to assume office until those litigations are resolved by the courts. This, he said, would be a safeguard against fraud by those being challenged in court.
REMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan
