Lawmakers, others seek release of Uwais panel report
From Martins Oloja, Abuja Bureau Chief
APPREHENSIVE that the Uwais Panel report on electoral reform might be swept under the carpet, participants at a Media Round Table on the Electoral Reform Committee (ERC) Report rose from a round table at the weekend in Abuja with a call on President Umaru Yar'Adua to immediately release the report to the public.
The ERC late last year submitted the report of the committee to the President who promised an immediate release and a White Paper on the document. Four months on, nothing has been said on the subject from the seat of power.
The participants comprised members of the National Assembly, as well as representatives of the print and electronic media, civil society organisations (CSO) and development partners, including the International Republican Institute.
A statement released at the end of the interactive session specifically called for the release of the ERC report to the Nigerian public. It called on government to expedite action on the production of the White Paper on the report and also urged the Yar'Adua government not to renege on its commitment to electoral reforms in the country.
The media round table was organised by the Gender and Affirmative Action Issue Based Project (an initiative of Coalitions for Change, C4C) with the support of the International Republican Institute in Nigeria.
Members of the National Assembly at the round table included Senator Eme Ufot Ekaette (Akwa Ibom) who chaired the event and doubles as Chair of Gender Electoral and Constitution, Memoranda Committee, Beni Lar (Plateau) Binta Masi Garba, Elizabeth Ogbaga (Ebonyi) from House of Representatives and Afiniki Eunice Dauda from the Niger State House of Assembly.
From the CSO community at the discussion were Mrs. Shehu Mahdi, Secretary General, Women Rights Advancement & Protection Alternative (WRAPA); Mrs. Remi Bakare-Adiuku, politician from Lagos State; Mrs. Njideka Anyadike, a governorship aspirant in Anambra State; and Hajia Amina Salihu, Head of Coalition for Change (C4C), Abuja.
A presentation of Media Reports on the ERC recommendations was carried out by Mrs. Oby Nwankwo who had chaired the Gender Electoral and Constitutional Reform Memorandum Technical Committee.
The lead paper at the round-table "Role of the Media in the Electoral and Constitution Reform Processes in Nigeria: Proposals on Strategies," was delivered by the Chairman of the Editorial Board of The Guardian, Dr. Reuben Abati.
The purpose of the roundtable was to, among others, give key stakeholders in the media and civil society organisations an opportunity to review the ongoing reforms in the country and to articulate advocacy and media strategies for demanding the release of the ERC report while focusing on the electoral and constitution review activities that are going on at various levels.
On August 29, 2007 a 22-member Presidential Electoral Reform Committee (ERC) was inaugurated with the task of reviewing and recommending on the electoral processes in Nigeria. This included examining relevant provisions of the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act and other election related laws.
On 24 June 2008, the Gender, Electoral and Constitutional Memoranda Committee (GEM) submitted a memo to the ERC, recommending among others, the independence of INEC; affirmative action for women in politics; independent candidature; proportional representation; resolution of all election petitions before swearing in of officials; holding of elections to office of president and governor at least six months to expiration of term; and, removal of the responsibility for constituency delimitation from INEC; Also recommended was: funding of INEC to be on a first charge basis on the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation; removal of INEC from the list of Federal Executive bodies in Section 153 of the 1999 Constitution; and creation of an autonomous and constitutionally recognized Electoral Offences Commission to investigate, co-ordinate enforcement and prosecution of all electoral offences.
At the media round table, participants raised concerns on ctitical issues including the dire need for information and citizens' participation in the electoral reform process, recommendations in the ERC report that promote gender inclusiveness and affirmative action, the imperative of timely action, the role of the media in the electoral reform process and viable strategies for demanding for the release of the report, and the wide dessimination of the recommendations.
At the end of the discussions, the round table resolved that :
- Nigerians have a right to demand the release of the ERC report to the public and the white paper to be produced;
- the women's movement should embark on aggressive advocacy to consolidate the gains from the ERC recommendations while lobbying the legislature for inclusion of the GEM recommendations not realised in the ERC Report;
- strategic alliances should be formed by political parties to aid the demand for the release of the ERC report and the government white paper on it as a means fasttracking engagement and internalisation towards the 2011 elections.
- To aid citizen participation, the ERC report and the subsequent government white paper should be simplified and translated into several Nigerian languages and be widely circulated;
- civil society should continue to seek entry points for constructive engagement through varied advocacy strategies and sustained partnership with the media to raise awareness on the recommendations and the followup activities around the report;
- strategies for advocacy and media engagement on the ERC Report should include focused media debates and dialogue feature and follow-up stories on the report, the institution of newspaper polling on the views of Nigerians around specific recommendations, exploring the use of the medium of cartoons, encourage sustained coverage and reporting on the activities on the report at both Executive and Legislative levels;
- civil society organisations have a reponsibility to create and encourage media discussions on gender issues in general and especially those on electoral and constitutional reforms through deliberate initiatives that give the media resources and space for informed reporting and advocacy towards achieving gender parity in Nigeria's democratic space; and,
- in order to deepen mobilisation around gender issues in the reforms, CSOs should step down future discussions and activities to the state level in order to create awareness and enhance citizen participation.
