Electronic Voting: Akpabio Tackles PLAC’s Clement Nwankwo, Says EU Cannot Dictate for NASS
The President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio on Sunday squared up to the Executive Director of the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), Mr, Clement Nwankwo over the latter’s criticism of the Senate’s handling of the amendment of the 2022 Electoral Act currently ongoing at the National Assembly.
Mr. Nwankwo had while reacting to the Senate’s amendment of the Act called on Nigerians to resist the action of the lawmakers. The PLAC boss while featuring on Channels’ TV programme Politics Today Thursday called on the lawmakers not to act as “overlords” over Nigerians that elected them.
“You have to be transparent. People elected you as a legislator; you didn’t fight your way into that position. You were elected by the people, and you represent the people.
“You must respect citizens’ views. Don’t act as overlords. There is nothing that makes you superior to the ordinary Nigerian. You were elected, and you are accountable to the people.
“When you beg people to vote you in, you must listen to them. That is what is painful to a lot of us. You act as if you are an overlord, but you are not listening to us, the citizens,” Mr. Nwankwo had admonished.
Akpabio Responds
However, Akpabio while speaking at the launching of the book, ‘The Burden of Legislators in Nigeria.” a book written by a former lawmaker from Sen Akpabio’s home state of Akwa Ibom, senator Effiong Bob, Akpabio explained that the Senate did not delete electronic transmission of result from the bill.
According to Akpabio the Senate only removed the word “real-time” to ensure that people do not see it as a loophole to engage in frivolous litigation after elections.
The Senate President, though he didn’t call Mr. Nwankwo by name specifically singled him out indirectly when he said:
“We’ll not be intimidated. We’ll do what is right for this country and our expression, our lawmaking will reflect the wishes of the generality of Nigerians, not that of one NGO or somebody who gets money from the European Union to carry senators to Lagos and then ask them for account and then hand over (to) them a paper and say go and pass, that is not lawmaking. Retreats are not lawmaking, retreats are part of consultations. So, why do you think that paper you agreed on in Lagos during retreat is what must be agreed on the floor.”
PLAC over the years has partnered the National Assembly on various legislative issues including gender inclusion, electoral reforms and security. In the last since the inception of the 10th National Assembly, PLAC has organised series of retreats and townhall meetings in conjunction with the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Akpabio Explains Senate’s decision
The Senate President explained that the Senate did not expunge the electronic transmission of election result from the bill, but deleted “real time” due to the fact that several parts of Nigeria, especially parts of northern Nigeria where security challenges have made it impossible for telecommunication companies to run their businesses effectively. He cited the experience of Americans during the contest between President George Bush Jr. And Vice President Al Gore.
According to him, “If we make it mandatory that we must do it real-time, electronically, go and look at what happened in America between George Bush and Al Gore. By the time the votes came in, Al Gore had actually won the election. But what happened? George Bush was declared while the votes were still hanging during a trans…electronic vote. Even the best of countries are yet to get it right. That is the first war. But they are more civilized than us.
“In Nigeria, civil society would have called out students and everybody to go to the street; that we have discovered a massive fraud. But they were able to protect their country from disintegrating and protect their democracy from being rubbish. So, as we talk, we must have the spirit of what I may regard as patriotism. It is unfortunate.”
“All institutions have the right to express themselves, thank God democracy is in existence. I must state clearly without ambiguity that there’s no fault or insinuation and no midst or misunderstanding. The Senate has acted and when we approve the votes you’ll see that the Senate has not removed anything.
“If you want to use bicycle to carry your votes from one polling unit to the ward centre, do so. If you want to use your phone to transmit, do so. If you want to use your iPad to do anything, do so. If you have network in your area, go ahead with transmission,”
The Senate President while taking further jab on Mr. Nwankwo and other critics of the Senate said:
“We’re yet to complete the process, so why are people setting up panels in all television studios and then abusing and then people have become mouth legislators. Go and contest election if you want to talk about lawmaking and go and join them and make the law. None of them have even been elected councillors yet but they are on the television abusing the senators, abusing members of the legislators; but I leave them to God.”