Senate amends electoral act, reduces INEC’s election notice window to 180 days

The Senate on Wednesday approved a major adjustment to Nigeria’s electoral timetable, reducing the period within which the Independent National Electoral Commission is required to publish the notice of election from 360 days to 180 days.

The decision followed the adoption of an amendment moved by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Senator Tahir Monguno, who proposed that the earlier requirement of 360 days be reviewed downward to six months.

The change was made during clause-by-clause consideration of the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill, which lawmakers subjected to scrutiny in a session that lasted about four and a half hours.

Consideration of the bill commenced at about 2 p.m. and stretched until 6:26 p.m., underscoring the intensity of deliberations on the wide-ranging electoral reforms contained in the proposed legislation.

The Electoral Act amendment bill was the only item listed on the Senate’s Order Paper for the day, following a valedictory session held in honour of the late former lawmaker, Okey Ezea.

At the Committee of the Whole, senators reviewed all 155 clauses of the bill, approving the legislation after adopting the committee’s report.

While several provisions of the existing Electoral Act were amended to reflect emerging realities in Nigeria’s electoral process, the majority of the clauses were retained as originally proposed.

The reduction in the notice period is expected to give INEC greater operational flexibility while still providing sufficient time for political parties, candidates and other stakeholders to prepare ahead of general elections, as the National Assembly continues efforts to fine-tune the country’s electoral legal framework ahead of future polls.