The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has revealed why individuals arrested for vote-buying during last month’s Anambra State governorship election have not yet been charged to court, citing the failure of security agencies to submit investigation reports.
Speaking yesterday at a stakeholders’ forum on elections organised by the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room in Abuja, INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, SAN, stressed that while the commission possesses the statutory powers to prosecute electoral offenders, it lacks the capacity to make arrests and depends entirely on law enforcement agencies for evidence.
“We are reaching out to the police, the EFCC, and all other relevant agencies. We need the reports of the investigations conducted on those who were arrested,” Professor Amupitan said.
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“INEC’s mandate is to prosecute, not to arrest. We are liaising with the law enforcement agencies to ensure that those arrested will have their day in court.”
The INEC chairman expressed satisfaction that civil society and the public were aware of the arrests, but emphasised that prosecution could not proceed without formal investigative dossiers from the arresting agencies.
Amupitan further identified poor telecommunication networks as the commission’s greatest challenge in achieving real-time upload of polling unit results through the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
He noted that many of Nigeria’s 176,000 polling units are located in remote areas with little or no network coverage, hampering technological efforts to enhance transparency.
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He called for greater political accountability to complement technological advancements, insisting that the integrity of Nigeria’s democracy depends on both.
Civil society groups at the forum urged INEC and security agencies to expedite action on electoral offences to serve as a deterrent ahead of future elections.
