[BREAKING] Chibuzo Okereke: Political Culture Must Allow Us Deploy Credible Technology To Drive Electoral Process

Chibuzo Okereke, Co-convener of the National Legislative Conference, addressed the role of technology in elections, emphasising the need for gradual adoption.

“Technology is important here. But again, political culture must allow us to deploy credible technology to drive the process. And technology must be incremental,” he explained, warning against immediate, wholesale implementation without sufficient voter education.

Speaking during an interview on ARISE NEWS on Thursday, Chibuzo Okereke called for a more structured electoral process in Nigeria, stating the need for a fixed election date and careful planning for the proposed single-day elections.

Okereke noted that Nigeria remains one of the few democracies without a predetermined election date, contrasting it with countries like the US and Ghana.

“On the issue of one-day or single-day election, as you may know, Nigeria is about the only country that doesn’t even have an election date. As of today, you know the election date in the US is 2028. In Ghana, you know the election date in 2028,” he said, stressing the importance of long-term electoral planning.

While he acknowledged the feasibility of conducting all elections in one day, he raised concerns about the logistical demands. “As of today, the manpower needed for elections in Nigeria is about two million. And if you’re going to do it in one day, you’re looking at almost four million and above,” he explained, warning against rushed policy implementation without thorough research and planning.

Okereke also addressed the conduct of lawmakers, citing systemic failures and the lack of proper capacity-building initiatives. He pointed to the case of a recently elected senator who was inducted into office within 48 hours of her tribunal victory, bypassing the structured orientation for new legislators.

“Some of us wondered when she even did her asset declaration documentation in the National Assembly,” he remarked.

Highlighting governance issues at the local level, Okereke stated that the collapse of the local government system has contributed to the broader inefficiencies in governance.

“The local government system has collapsed in Nigeria. Everybody knows that” he said, suggesting either a restructuring of governance to remove local governments or the establishment of an independent Local Government Electoral Commission.

On electoral logistics, Okereke advocated for professionalising the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by outsourcing logistics to independent firms rather than politically affiliated unions.

“Today, INEC uses the National Road Transport Workers for logistics, but many of them are affiliated with political parties,” he said, adding that securing direct funding from the Consolidated Revenue Fund could enhance INEC’s independence.

Okereke also noted that holding elections in a single day could help curb the bandwagon effect, as political actors would be less able to manipulate voting patterns.

“If you do an election on one day, attention will be divided, and voters’ behaviour can possibly—yes, people will be saying, ‘Oh, vote along this party line, because when we work together, we’ll achieve results.’ But it will reduce the availability of time politicians and candidates have to be focusing on other electoral offices except themselves,” he said.