How inclusive was Nigeria’s 2019 general election?

The 2019 general election may have come and gone but the ripples are still being felt. While many aggrieved candidates and political parties have filed petitions at the Election Petitions Tribunals to recover their stolen mandate, many stakeholders such as political parties, civil society organisations, the academia and media have commenced post-election review meetings. I have been part of many of them. Two academic institutions have approached me to write a paper for them on my observations of the last elections.  I was also part of the participants at the Annual Political Parties and Stakeholders Summit organised by the Political Parties Leadership and Policy Development Centre of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies on May 2 and 3, 2019 in Abuja.

I also  participated at  the  European Centre for Electoral Support  and the  Federal Republic of Germany-funded Preventing Electoral Violence and Education LEAD training in governance and elections for  stakeholders: women, youth and PWD candidates held in Lagos from  April 8 to 12. Furthermore, I was privileged to moderate at the Access Nigeria post-2019 elections review held on March 29 and the third quarterly stakeholders’ roundtable on inclusive elections in Nigeria held on May 7, 2019 also organised by Access Nigeria.

Much as there are a lot of things we can condemn about how the 2019 elections panned out, there are equally significant things that need to be highlighted and commended about the elections. I say without any fear of contradiction that the elections were the most inclusive ever to be held in Nigeria. This is praiseworthy!

The Independent National Electoral Commission has been consistent in the integration of specialised interest groups such as the youth, women and Persons with Disabilities in the electoral process. Recall that INEC launched its Gender Policy on November 25, 2014. Since then, the commission has been walking the talk by appointing female secretaries to the commission. First was Mrs. Augusta Chinwe Ogakwu and recently Mrs. Rose Anthony Oriaran. The commission has also been reflecting gender balance among the poll workers and in other appointments. There is also priority voting for old people, pregnant women and nursing mothers. Where the culture does not permit mingling of men and women, the Electoral Act permits separate voting queues to be formed at elections.

On Tuesday, September 25, 2018, INEC as part of its effort to ensure the full participation of eligible Persons with Disabilities and all other vulnerable groups ahead of the 2019 launched a framework on access and participation of the PWDs in the electoral process. The commission said that the framework marked the formal end of uncoordinated approach to the PWD issues, as far as the electoral process was concerned. While speaking at the launch, the National Commissioner and Chairman, Outreach and Partnership Committee at INEC, Dr. Adekunle Ladipo Ogunmola, said, “The commission introduced some innovations, such as Election Day written instructions at the polling units to enhance the participation of the hearing impaired, and sign language interpreters at major events.”

INEC has also introduced braille ballot guide for the visually impaired voters and magnifying glasses for persons with albinism. In addition, in the Regulations and Guidelines for 2019 Elections published on January 14, 2019, the commission instructed that there should be separate voting lines for Persons with Disabilities. It is heartwarming that for the first time in Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, January 23, 2019 signed the Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018.

Furthermore, on Wednesday, December 12, 2018 as part of its commitment to inclusivity in the electoral process, INEC said it was targeting 15 states where it planned to conduct the 2019 elections for the Internally Displaced Persons. Its National Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this at a Stakeholders’ Validation Conference on IDP Voting in Nigeria. He said the electoral body created the policy framework to guide the conduct of the IDP voting operations and bring the IDP communities into the voting net.

These in summary were some of the inclusive measures the electoral body took ahead of the 2019 elections. At the various review meetings earlier mentioned, and specifically, those organised by Inclusive Friends Association under the platform of Access Nigeria, many Persons with Disabilities attested to the following: That there were braille ballot guides to assist the visually impaired for the first time in Nigeria’s electoral history; there were Election Day Written Instructions to guide the deaf or people with hearing impairment; Magnifying glasses were deployed to some Polling Units across the country to assist Persons with Albinism in voting; priority voting was granted PWDs; Disability Persons Organisations were accredited by INEC to deploy observers; some Persons with Disabilities contested and won elections in 2019; some PWDs were appointed as INEC poll workers.

According to the Convener of Access Nigeria, Disability Votes Matter campaign, Ms. Grace Jerry, the campaign in 2016 brought together disability persons organisations and conducted first and second Polling Units Accessibility Audits. An election review held after the 2019 elections showed that INEC and other advocacy targets have fully or partially implemented 10 of the recommendations made by the campaign. In her speech at the roundtable, Grace said among other things, “YIAGA-Africa’s Parallel Vote Tabulation Data showed that while the braille ballot guide was distributed at 41 per cent of the Polling Units nationwide, the PWD-specific Election Day written instructions were pasted in 81 per cent of the Polling Units.” It is noteworthy that INEC did not just introduce the aforementioned innovations, they were also included in the commission’s Training Manual for Election Officials.

However, it was not all kudos to INEC at the review meetings. It was observed that physical accessibility of the PUs for voters with disabilities was a major issue. Violence and vote-buying also muscled out the PWDs that contested elections while many of the PWDs were injured when fracas took place at the polling units or collation centres. Among the major recommendations from Access Nigeria include: The need for INEC to have ramps and handrails for voters on wheelchairs or crutches; That INEC consolidates and institutionalise the braille ballot guide, Election Day Written Instructions (EC30 D PWD), Magnifying Glasses and priority voting for all future elections – both off cycle and general elections; adequate training for Poll Workers on how to administer assistive devices for PWDs; as well as early and sustained voter education targeted at the PWDs.

The forum called for full implementation of the National Disability Act as well as decisive actions against electoral violence and vote-trading as they negatively impact on disability voters. It is heartwarming that the National Orientation Agency has begun public sensitisation on the Disability Act. Among the useful advocacy tips suggested at the roundtable were: PWD Town Hall Meetings; Oversight Hearings; Investigative Missions, National Lobby Days and Briefing Papers.

Among the dignitaries at the roundtable were two INEC National Commissioners – Hajia Amina Bala Zakari and Dr. Adekunle Ladipo Ogunmola; Chairperson of House of Representatives committee on INEC and Civil Society, Hajia Aishat Dukku; NDI Senior Resident Director, Aubrey McCutcheon; US Deputy Chief of Mission, US Embassy, David Young and Deputy Programme Manager for Governance, Conflict and Social Development, UKAID Nigeria, Samuel Achimugu.