The Independent National Electoral Commission on Wednesday issued a response to allegations from the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project regarding the handling of electoral offences from the 2023 general elections.
SERAP had claimed on Sunday that INEC had failed to prosecute various electoral offenders, including governors and deputy governors, and had not enlisted independent counsel for other cases of electoral malpractice such as vote-buying.
In a press statement signed by National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education, Sam Olumekun, INEC countered these claims, clarifying that governors and deputy governors are protected from prosecution by constitutional immunity and that the commission has no records of any such officials being investigated or charged for election-related offences.
“Our attention has been drawn to media reports attributed to the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project accusing the Commission of failure or neglect in prosecuting electoral offenders arising from the 2023 general election.
“These allegations are untrue and fly in the face of facts already in the public domain. In the first place, governors and deputy governors have constitutional immunity from prosecution.
“SERAP cannot be unaware of this constitutional provision. In any case, the Commission has no record that any of them has been arrested, investigated, or that a prima facie case has been established to initiate their prosecution,” the statement read in part.
INEC confirmed that it received 215 case files from the police, implicating 238 individuals during the presidential and national assembly elections and 536 suspects during the governorship and state assembly elections.
The commission mentioned that the prosecutions include some of its officials, including a Resident Electoral Commissioner currently facing trial in Yola.
“Furthermore, if SERAP had done a basic fact check, it would have known that at the end of the 2023 General Election, the Commission announced that it received 215 case files from the Nigeria Police following the arrest and investigation of alleged violators of the electoral laws across the country.
“These include 52 files involving 238 alleged offenders during the presidential and national assembly elections and 163 files for 536 suspects from the governorship and state assembly elections.
“It is important to also inform the public that the Commission’s commitment to the prosecution of electoral offenders is not limited to persons outside the Commission.
“Indeed, officials of the Commission, some of them highly placed, have been affected, including a Resident Electoral Commissioner currently being prosecuted in a High Court in Yola,” Olumekun said.
In an unprecedented move to ensure effective prosecution, INEC partnered with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), allowing private lawyers, including Senior Advocates of Nigeria, to represent INEC on a pro bono basis.
The commission stated that this collaboration has already led to successful convictions in Kebbi and Kogi states.
“Recognising the need for their speedy prosecution and bearing in mind that the Commission does not have enough in-house lawyers, it engaged the Nigerian Bar Association under the leadership of the immediate past President, Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, for assistance.
“The NBA agreed, and a well-publicised joint press conference was held between the Chairman of the Commission and the President of the NBA.
“The Chairman of the Commission and other officials have also been providing updates to the public on the matter, as a simple Google search will show,” the statement continued.
The statement added that INEC has been working with anti-corruption agencies, notably the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), to address and prosecute cases of vote-buying.
A joint prosecution team comprising 18 lawyers from both the EFCC and INEC has reportedly achieved convictions in Lagos, Gombe, and Kwara states.
Acknowledging the slow pace of electoral offence prosecutions, INEC explained that, unlike election-related disputes, electoral offences are not subject to specific timelines.
Such cases are prosecuted in the jurisdiction where the offences occurred, often leading to lengthy court proceedings.
This, INEC said, underscored the need for electoral reform, including establishing an Electoral Offences Tribunal with time-bound mandates for quicker resolution of cases.
“Specifically, a special joint prosecution team of 18 lawyers drawn from the EFCC and INEC was set up to prosecute suspects. Through this joint effort, successful prosecutions have so far been recorded in Lagos, Gombe, and Kwara States.
“The prosecution of electoral offences is very slow for the simple reason that electoral offences are not time-bound, unlike pre-election and post-election cases which must be determined within 180 days at the trial court/tribunal and a maximum of 60 days at each layer of appeal.
“Furthermore, under Section 145 (1) of the Electoral Act 2022, electoral offences are prosecuted in the jurisdiction where the alleged offence is committed and by the state judiciary. Some cases can go on for several years,” INEC explained.
The commission reiterated its call for legal reforms to enhance the efficiency and speed of prosecuting electoral offences.
“That is why the Commission has been at the forefront of advocating for electoral reform to make electoral offences time-bound for the speedy prosecution of electoral offenders, including the establishment of an Electoral Offences Tribunal,” it said.
INEC assured Nigerians of its ongoing commitment to upholding the electoral process and encouraged SERAP to verify available facts before making further allegations.