INEC replies critics: ‘We have capacity to monitor parties’ campaign spending’

INEC replies critics: ‘We have capacity to monitor parties’ campaign spending’

Posted by Sylvester on Monday, December 29, 2014 0

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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has maintained that despite open criticisms from different quarters on the
commission’s inability to monitor and appropriate sanctions on political parties that contravene the electoral act in terms of spending on political campaigns, the commission has said it was ready to do justice within its means to ensure that it regulates spending on campaigns by
various political parties in the 2015 general elections.

Though how a political party’s candidate raises his or her campaign funds is the party’s affair, the process must comply with the extant laws and pass the integrity test. First, Nigerian laws are unambiguous on campaign
expenses and funding.

The 1999 Constitution in Section 221 clearly states: “No association, other than a political party, shall canvass for votes for any candidate at any election or contribute to the funds of any political party or to the election expenses of any candidate at an election.”

The Companies and Allied Matters Act also expressly forbids companies in Section 38(2) from funding or donating gifts, property or money to any political party or association.

According to section 91 of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended, the maximum expenses to be incurred by a candidate in a presidential election shall be N1billion while the governorship is N200 million.

The Electoral Act also placed a campaign ceiling of N40million and N20million for senatorial and House of Representatives candidates respectively.

N10million is the fixed amount for election expenses in the state assembly and chairmanship election in an area council.

Accordingly, sanctions for candidate who knowingly flaunts these campaign spending limits are as follows: For presidential election its N1million fine or 12 months imprisonment or both.

Governorship, N800,000 or nine months or both. 600,000 or imprisonment for six months would be slammed on a senatorial candidate who goes against the Electoral Act while 500,000 or five months imprisonment will be slammed on a House of Representatives candidate who defaults on the campaign spending.

While explaining the situation to BD SUNDAY during the week, Kayode Idowu, the chief press secretary to INEC Chairman said the commission’s capability to monitor and sanction political parties on spending during the electioneering campaigns were not in doubt.
According to him, “The commission has put structures in place to track expenditures. That structure did not exist in 2011. And we could not
do much in that regard. Now, we have been able to put structure in place to track expenditure and we are going to continue to do that. We have a department that monitors that, aside from the underground findings; they also dispatch their members to political rallies to monitor how much is being expended on what. But the situation now is that we can’t know whether a person has overspent until he or she has spent it.”

On whether INEC has access to the bank accounts of various political parties to determine their spending sprees, Idowu confirmed that the
commission was not limited to having access to political parties’ bank accounts, adding that they will always demand for the bank statements when there was need for it.

It would be recalled that at a fund raising dinner for President Jonathan’s re-election held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa recently, 21 PDP governors donated N50million each which amounted to N1.05billion. Business owners in the Oil and Gas sector donated N5billion while their counterparts in the Real Estate & Building made a donation of N4billion. Likewise, the Transport and Aviation sector made a pledge of N1billion; Agriculture donated N500million while those in the power sector pledged N500m. Board of the Shelter
Development Limited donated N250million while the Construction sector pledged N310million. Road Construction players pledged N250million while the National Automotive Association pledged N450million.

Chairman of the fundraising dinner, Tunde Ayeni, who is also the chairman of Skye Bank, made a donation of N2billion; Bola Shagaya donated N5billion, while former Information Minister, Jerry Gana, who was chairman of the fundraising planning committee, donated N5bn on behalf of himself and his friends.

Others are Chairman of SIFAX group, 100million and Rivers state PDP Chapter, N50million.

Speaking on this development, Yunusa Tanko, chairman, Inter-Party Advisory Council of Nigeria (IPAC), told BD SUNDAY that there was need for INEC to give adequate attention to regulate spending during the electoral campaigns noting that failure to do this may give advantage to political party(s) with financial war chest over others.

“How INEC could control spending on political campaigns are there in the electoral acts, but the only issue here is, will the commission be allowed to carry out its independent functions? This is one of the reasons while we called for INEC to be funded independently. There are limitations to how INEC could sanction those in government on what they spend on political campaigns for their parties.

“As far as we are concerned, if a political party is spending above the required amounts then there is an issue. INEC has to be truly independent, they don’t have to be under the whims and caprices of any political for it to be used to their advantage,” he said.