VZCZCXRO2587
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHOS #0281/01 2031432
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 211432Z JUL 08
FM AMCONSUL LAGOS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0048
INFO RUEHUJA/AMEMBASSY ABUJA 9732
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000281 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DOE FOR GPERSONS, CHAYCOCK 
TREASURY FOR DPETERS, RHALL, RABDULRAZAK 
COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS 
USDOC FOR 3130/USFC/OIO/ANESA/DHARRIS 
STATE PASS USTR FOR LISER, AGAMA 
STATE PASS USAID FOR NFREEMAN, GBERTOLIN 
STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN, MSTUCKART 
STATE PASS TDA FOR LFITTS, PMARIN 
STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: ELECTORAL REFORM COMMITTEE TAKES RECOMMENDATIONS 
IN SOUTHERN GEO-POLITICAL ZONES 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: Nine months after its inauguration, the Electoral 
Reform Committee (ERC) held public hearings. Recommendations from 
the three southern zones included: inclusion of civil society as 
INEC members, funding of INEC from the Federation Account, staggered 
elections, queue voting, issuance of voter ID cards, and reduction 
in number of political parties. End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) Appointed by President Yar'Adua on August 28, 2007, the 22 
member Electoral Reform Committee (ERC) held a series of public 
hearings in the south-west cities of Lagos and Ibadan, in the 
south-south cities of Calabar and Benin City, and in the South-east 
cities of Enugu and Owerri. The hearings followed the same format at 
each location: ERC listened to the general public on the first day; 
the governments, political parties, electoral commissions, and 
security agencies on the second day; and, civil society 
organizations, women, media, and other interested groups on the 
third day.  Justice Muhammadu Lawal Uwais, Chairman of the ERC, 
recalled in his opening remarks at each session the terms of 
reference drawn up by President Yar'Adua to guide the ERC's work. 
They include reviewing past elections and identifying factors that 
impacted negatively on their performance; examining the role of 
institutions and stakeholders as well as the current electoral act 
to determine their impact on the quality of past elections; 
prescribing mechanisms to reduce post election violence and 
recommending an electoral process that conforms to acceptable 
international standards.  According to Uwais, the Committee had 
received over 200 memoranda from stakeholders all over Nigeria. 
Public hearings were held in recognition that some stakeholders were 
unable to submit written memoranda, Uwais said.  Below follows 
recommendations that recurred at each hearing. 
 
--------------------------------------- 
INEC Must Include Civil Society Members 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (U) Participants criticized the existing manner of appointing 
INEC principal officers. (Note: The existing electoral law empowers 
the President to appoint the INEC chair and commissioners, subject 
to ratification by the Senate of the National Assembly. End Note) 
Former Oyo Sate Governor Lam Adesina and former Edo State Governor 
John Odigie-Oyegun, among others, proposed that future INEC 
officials be drawn from civil society organizations, labor unions, 
professional bodies, women, students and religious groups. Other 
participants, including Professor Adebayo Williams, Chairman of the 
Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC), argued for 
the appointment of the INEC chairman by the National Judicial 
Council as a way to make INEC more autonomous and non-partisan. 
Femi Aborishade, a civil society representative, echoing the 
sentiment of many other NGO presenters, demanded that INEC need to 
have a budget drawn from the Federation Account, which was not 
subject to the discretion of the President, as is presently the 
case. 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
Stagger Elections for Efficiency, Transparency 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶4. (U) Several participants criticized the INEC election timetable 
that requires elections to be held simultaneously in all states. In 
addition to overstretching resources, the arrangement aids election 
fraud and other irregularities, they argued. Many presenters 
recommended staggered elections to ensure proper coordination and 
monitoring by INEC and civil society.  Many participants suggested 
that each geo-political zone should hold its elections on a 
different date. 
 
---------------------------------- 
Queue Voting, Voter ID Recommended 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) The majority of presenters who commented on voting procedures 
called for modifications to the secret ballot system.  Suggestions 
included the adoption of queue voting rather than secret ballots and 
the immediate display of written result sheets at each polling 
station. Participants recognized the fact that this process resulted 
in Nigeria's freest and fairest election in 1993, in which Chief 
M.K.O Abiola of the now defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) was 
elected.  Former Lagos Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu called for the 
 
LAGOS 00000281  002 OF 003 
 
 
institution of a voter identification card, and for the 
establishment of an Electoral Security Commission composed of the 
police, army, civil society, civil defense, and legal community to 
assist with conducting elections. 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
INEC to Focus on Elections Not Admin Matters 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) Many groups suggested that aspects of INEC's current 
responsibilities could be distributed to relevant government 
agencies. Doing so will relieve INEC of certain administrative 
duties and enable it to concentrate on conducting the elections. 
Some examples included: allowing the National Civic Registration 
Council to conduct voter registration; giving the National 
Directorate of Employment, assisted by security agencies, the task 
of handling recruitment and screening of INEC staff; and, assigning 
the National Orientation Agency to conduct civic education and 
sensitize people on election related matters. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
Trim Parties To Avoid Confusion Among Electorate 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶7. (U) At all hearings, many organizations argued that the existence 
of fifty-one registered political parties is inimical to credible 
elections.  Many presenters, including several political parties, 
recommended a two-party system consisting of the two largest 
political parties. They alleged that the current proliferation of 
parties is responsible for the domination of the Peoples Democratic 
Party (PDP) over the political scene.  Another contributor wanted 
more stringent conditions for party membership. He said politicians 
who switch parties should be required to be members of the new party 
for two years before being allowed to run for elected office.  That, 
he said, will discourage politicians who merely join a political 
party for personal gain. (Note: Often individuals declare their 
candidacies believing that they will be bought off by competitors. 
End Note). Some participants argued for equitable media coverage of 
and transparent donations to political parties. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
No Assumption of Office Until Tribunal Process Ends 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶8. (U) Participants also suggested that candidates whose election is 
disputed not be allowed to assume office until all the petitions 
arising from that dispute are decided by the election tribunals. 
Representatives of state governments and political parties were 
among those who decried the present situation in which elected 
officials are removed from office over election related cases 
several months after they have been sworn into office.  Presenters 
proposed deadlines of between three to six months for the 
adjudication of election petitions. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
Proportional Representation Assures Ethnic Balance 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶9. (U) Many contributors frowned at the existing electoral 
arrangement which, they alleged, denied some political parties and 
ethnic groups participation in national and state legislatures. 
They urged the ERC to propose an electoral process that will ensure 
that legislative seats are allocated in proportion to the votes won 
by each political party. Others urged the adoption of a proportional 
arrangement that will ensure that many ethnic nationalities are duly 
represented. 
 
-------------------------- 
Punish Electoral Offenders 
-------------------------- 
 
¶10. (U) Many participants decried the culture of impunity that 
surrounds the electoral process. They testified that existing 
electoral laws lack provisions for punishment, including jail terms, 
for persons violating electoral laws. The absence of such punitive 
measures encourages election fraud and irregularities, they said. 
They recommended the establishment of an Election Offences Tribunal 
to try electoral officers, party and security agents and others who 
 
LAGOS 00000281  003 OF 003 
 
 
tamper with the election process. 
 
------------- 
Gender Parity 
------------- 
 
¶11. (U) Women's  groups at all hearings advanced the argument that 
some political offices should be reserved for women, and called for 
that policy to be enshrined not only in the electoral law but also 
in the Nigerian constitution.  The ERC noted that the demand exceeds 
the panel's mandate. 
 
¶12. (U) Comment:  The impressive turn out and the well thought out 
contributions show that there is no dearth of ideas about how to 
conduct fair, credible elections; only political leadership can make 
it happen. As many contributors confided privately, they feared 
that, despite the hearings, the political leadership and commitment 
to really change the electoral system may not be there. Others 
expressed fears that, at best, ERC recommendations will be severely 
weakened by national legislators whose judgment is influenced by 
personal political considerations over national good.   End Comment 
 
 
¶13. (U) This cable was cleared with Embassy Abuja. 
 
HUDSON