INEC clarifies RECs only act on its delegated authority
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
State Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) only take orders from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and are not its members, INEC National Commissioner and Information and Committee Chairman Festus Okoye has clarified.
He said INEC comprises only the Chairman and the 12 National Commissioners, going by the Constitution, which does not recognise RECs as members of INEC.
Okoye also denied reports of tension in INEC or between RECs and National Commissioners.
He made the clarification on Channels Television in reaction to reports of alleged clandestine moves in INEC to ensure the adoption of political office aspirants who did not participate in party primaries, which is against the law.
Some RECs are said not to be comfortable with disclosures from INEC headquarters in Abuja that the reports of party primaries monitored by RECs are being ignored.
Okoye insisted RECs are not members of INEC and cannot appropriate collegiate powers in the affairs of the Commission.
His words: “Let me just say this and say it very clearly and unequivocally, if you look at the Constitution of Nigeria, which is the grundnorm, the Commission is made up of the Chairman, who is the Chief Electoral Commissioner of the Federation, and 12 National Commissioners.
“These are the ones that the Constitution refers to as the Commission.
“Now, RECs are not the Commission. The powers given to National Commissioners and the Chairman of the Commission are delegated to the RECs. In other words, RECs operate in a delegated capacity. So, if we do not delegate powers to a REC, a REC will not have powers to act.
“Furthermore, when a REC is appointed, the Chairman of the Commission swears in the REC, and the REC is assigned responsibilities by the Commission. In other words, he goes to represent the Commission, which is the Chairman and the 12 National Commissioners.
“You also have Electoral Officers in the 774 LGAs of the federation. All of them carry out the intendment and carry out the functions of the Commission as represented by the Chairman and the National Commissioners.”
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Position of RECs in the Constitution
What about the Third Schedule, paragraph 14 of the 1999 Constitution as amended, which says “There shall be for each state of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, a Resident Electoral Commissioner, who shall be appointed by the President …” under the same section which talks about INEC?
Okoye argued: “You have to begin to read from paragraph 14 where it says INEC shall comprise the following members – a Chairman, who shall be the Chief Electoral Commissioner, and 12 other members to be known as National Electoral Commissioners; and then, in paragraph 15, it says the Commission shall have powers to ….
“They are not recognised as members of the Commission. In 15(h), it says that the Commission shall have powers to delegate any of its powers to any REC. That’s the point I’m making.
“The Constitution says that the Commission shall be the Chairman and 12 National Commissioners and these Commissioners shall have powers to delegate any of its powers to a REC, so, there is no dispute.”
Are some RECs not happy with the publication of names of election candidates who did not emerge from primaries monitored by state RECs in the states?
“I’m not aware that any REC is complaining,” Okoye replied, per Vanguard.
“I’m trying to clarify issues relating to whether the Commission is bound under any circumstance, to accept the monitoring reports that have emerged from any REC.
“This is because if a REC has been directed by the Commission to monitor a party primary and he has submitted a report and within the intervening period, there is a court order saying don’t accept that report emanating from the one the REC monitored, accept the report from a different primary, I’m saying that as a Commission, we have the power and the right to take that decision without reference to the REC who must have monitored that primary in question.”
Okoye said he is not aware of in-fighting or tension between members of INEC which comprise the National Chairman and the 12 National Commissioners.
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