TENSION In National Assembly, Lawmakers In Serious TROUBLE As INEC Releases Guidelines To Remove Incompetent Senators, Reps
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released new guidelines and regulations for the recall of federal and state lawmakers.
The announcement was made on Thursday, September 19, 2024, by Sam Olumekun, INEC’ s National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, during a meeting.
This move came after INEC received numerous requests from various constituents seeking to recall their representatives in the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly. Some groups had even asked the electoral body to initiate the recall process on their behalf.
Olumekun explained that INEC met to finalize preparations for the Edo State governorship election scheduled for Saturday, September 21, 2024. During the meeting, the commission also considered and approved the revised regulations for the recall of members of the National Assembly, State Assemblies, and Councillors in the Area Councils of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
” The commission has, in the last few weeks, received several requests from different groups across the country for the recall of their representatives in the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly. Some of them have even requested the Commission to initiate the process of the recall on their behalf, ” he said.
Olumekun stressed that the recall process is entirely driven by voters. He clarified that INEC does not initiate the process but only implements it based on requests from the voters in a particular constituency.
” For clarity, the process is initiated by the voters in a constituency. The commission only implements their request in line with Sections 69, 110, and 160 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and Sections 2(c) and 113 of the Electoral Act, 2022, ” he emphasized.
The newly released 10- page guidelines outline the steps that constituents must follow to recall their representatives. The process begins with the submission of a petition to the INEC Chairman by the constituents. This petition must contain the signatures of a specified percentage of registered voters in the lawmaker’ s constituency.
Once the petition is submitted, INEC will verify the signatures and ensure that they meet the legal requirements before proceeding with the recall process.
This new development aims to ensure transparency and fairness in the recall process, while also empowering voters to hold their elected representatives accountable.
