Groups Ask Jega To Publish Contracts For Printing Ballot Papers
Featured, Latest Headlines Monday, February 9th, 2015
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Corruption Watch UK, and the African Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) have sent an open letter to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega seeking his clarifications on the contracts for printing ballot papers for the 2015 elections.
INEC Chairman Pro. Attahiru Jega
The groups expressed concerns at suggestions that INEC may have overpaid considerably for the ballot papers.
“Information passed to us suggests that INEC may have paid as much as four times more for the ballot papers than they cost to produce. If true, this raises serious issues of transparency and accountability in the procurement process by INEC, and will amount to a fundamental breach of the UN Convention against Corruption, to which Nigeria is a state party.”
The groups argued that, “Transparent, competitive and efficient procurement systems are part of the broad measures needed to curb corruption in the electoral process, and to achieve a fair political process and ultimately, the rule of law.”
The letter dated 6 February, 2015 was signed by SERAP’s Executive Director, Adetokunbo Mumuni; Corruption Watch’s Director, Andrew Feinstein, and ANEEJ’s Executive Director, David Ugolor.
According to the groups, “there must be full transparency over the contracts to print the ballot papers for the General Election, including the number of ballot papers ordered, the cost of the ballot papers, the companies selected to complete the contracts and the systems put in place to guarantee the security of the printing and delivery process.”
“We believe that if full transparency is not followed with regard to the ballot paper contracts, it is capable of tarnishing the legitimacy of the electoral process itself. Transparency is also necessary to enhance the credibility of INEC and citizens’ trust and full participation and engagement with the electoral process,” the groups also stated.
The groups therefore requested Professor Jega to use his “good offices and leadership to urgently and widely publish the contracts that INEC entered into for the ballot papers with a full break down of costs and the number of ballot papers ordered, and the companies that will print the papers.”
“At the very least, INEC should put in the public domain the cost of the contracts, the number of ballot papers specified in the contract, and the companies with which contracts have been entered into. We would also be grateful for clarifications on the process for the bidding for the contracts,” the groups added.
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How many contract were issued in Nigeria by GEJ’s government and given that the group is concern about transparency as a matter of principle, they should have started with GEJ’s oil contracts. With all the information we now know about the lack of transparency in the oil industry, why did not the group push GEJ’s government. In the first place, all the fear about the election is that if there is a change of government some terrible dirty linens will be open. Nigeria today is not like Nigeria in the day’s IBB. It is good to stand for transparency but not in this hypocritical manner. YOu want him to reveal the security measures for the ballot so that you can go and forge them. This is very naive.