By Michael Oche
Peering Advocacy and Advancement Centre in Africa (PAACA) has called for an urgent and comprehensive reform of the Nigerian Electoral Act to ensure a free, fair and credible 2027 elections.
The call is coming as Nigeria gears up for the 2027 general elections.
PAACA Executive Director, Ezenwa Nwagwu made the call at the public presentation of its memorandum on electoral reforms titled “We the people memorandum on electoral reforms 2025”.
The memorandum which recommended legal and administrative reforms was drawn from a culmination of town-hall meetings held by PAACA with various election stakeholders across 16 states, and draws insights from authoritative reports such as the Justice Uwais Committee Report, Afrobarometer surveys, and NPSA recommendations.
Nwagwu said the report serves as a clear and actionable roadmap designed to bridge the widening gap between Nigeria’s lofty democratic ideals and the often-challenging realities experienced by its citizens on the ground.
A key pillar of PAACA’s memorandum is the establishment of a specialized Electoral Offences Tribunal, noting that presently, election-related offenses are cumbersome to prosecute within the ordinary federal or state high courts, leading to severe delays and backlogs.
To deepen electoral accountability, PAACA proposed a 10-year ban from contesting public office for any individual convicted of an electoral offense, describing such a sanction as a powerful deterrent.
The memorandum also pushed for a constitutional amendment to prevent candidates with unresolved election petitions from being sworn into office. The current practice, which allows politicians to assume office while legal challenges against their elections are still pending, was criticized by the group as a loophole that “incentivizes stolen mandates.”
According to Nwagwu, “Let the courts speak before the oath. You cannot put someone in office, only to find out later they were never the rightful winner.”
PAACA also called for the complete isolation of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from executive manipulation.
The group expressed deep concern over the existing practice in which the President appoints the Commission’s leadership and its budget remains subject to annual appropriations.
Nwagwu said, “Our proposal seeks to establish a broad-based selection committee, incorporating representation from civil society, the judiciary, and the National Assembly, including the National Judicial Council, for all INEC appointments. These members would serve a single, non-renewable five-year term, with removal only possible through a rigorous due process following conviction for gross misconduct.
“Furthermore, to guarantee financial independence, INEC’s funds should be a first-line charge on the Consolidated Revenue Fund, completely insulated from annual appropriation or executive control. This foundational change is expected to dramatically improve INEC’s credibility, enhance public confidence in the electoral process, and establish genuine institutional independence.”
PAACA also called for the constitutional amendment that addresses the issue of defection by legislators. Under current law, legislators can switch political parties and still retain their seats.
Nwagwu said, “Our proposed amendment to the Constitution states that a member of the legislature who defects from the party under which they were elected shall automatically forfeit their seat, with exceptions only for instances of loss of party membership through expulsion or party merger.
“This amendment is designed to strengthen political accountability, ensuring that legislators remain faithful to the political parties and platforms that brought them into office. It reinforces the sanctity of the electoral mandate, actively discourages opportunistic party-switching, and promotes greater ideological consistency within the legislature.”
Other recommendations include promoting women’s political participation, institutionalizing the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) as a statutory body to strengthen electoral security coordination and the legal recognition of the IREV portal within the Electoral Act.
