The All Progressives Congress, APC, has called for all elections to be held simultaneously on the same day.The party’s Interim National Secretary, Alhaji Tijjani Musa Tumsah, who made the call weekend in Abuja while speaking with reporters, said conducting the elections same day could curb manipulations and reduce cost.
When asked how the 2015 general elections should be conducted, he said “I will tell INEC to conduct the whole election the same day for all offices. I will ask them to ensure that all the materials are there on time and provide the logistic support necessary to have that as best as possible. The elections must be transparent, and duly enforced.
“I want the elections held the same day so that there is no room for people to manipulate any bandwagon effects or any nuances or any intimidation that staggered elections would bring. In cost wise, it is also cheaper to hold the elections the same day.”
In order to ensure that the votes count, he urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to halt the current practice where persons already occupying political positions, supervise the elections.
According to him, for INEC to conduct a credible election, the Federal Government has no excuse to starve it of funds.
He called on the government to sort out the fund paucity that INEC is currently grappling with stressing that Nigeria is broke due to bad governance.
“That is the problem we have with the governors of PDP. INEC as an institution should have no issues with money if they are going to conduct credible elections.
“So that should be sorted out and then if you look again at the way the country is going right now, we are almost going towards broke. So what kind of leadership do you have whether to manipulate or not to manipulate, this is bad governance.”
Asked to give an update on APC registration, Tumsah expressed hope that the registration would start between now and October as proposed by the party.
On the chances of APC in the November 16, gubernatorial elections in Anambra, Tumsah said the party stands the best chance of emerging victorious from the contest because through a credible election, APC elected the most outstanding candidate amongst the contestants.
-The Nation
