A bill for the creation of a National Electoral Offences Commission is now before the National Assembly as part of fresh efforts to make the 2023 elections a resounding success.

The bill is likely to receive accelerated consideration, The Nation gathered yesterday.

Some provisions of the bill recommend tougher sanctions for political parties, candidates, party agents, supporters, voters, electoral commission staff, security personnel and election tribunal staff found violating the electoral process.

Among other things, the bill prescribes a 15-year jail term or N3million for thugs, vote buyers and those found guilty of vote inducement.

Those who tamper with ballot papers or boxes or electoral documents may be imprisoned for 15 years if found guilty.

But for a candidate or his or her agent who attempts to grab, loot, damage or destroy in any manner ballot boxes or ballot papers, it is a 20-year sentence with a N40million fine or both.

Any officer or executive of any association or political party who breaches Electoral Act 2022 or the 1999 Constitution may land in jail for 10 years with a fine of N10million or both.

As for election official or security personnel, engaged by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) or a State Electoral Commission, trying to influence election will attract  a six-month conviction or a N500,000 fine or both.

Similarly, it is an offence for  a candidate seeking an elective office  to forge document or give false document to INEC or  a state electoral commission.

Other punishable offences  include  being in possession of voter’s register without due authority, manufacturing of ballot papers, result sheets, invasion of polling booths or stations,  destruction of ballot boxes and ballot papers, announcement or declaration of  a false result.

To ensure sanity and a clean campaign, the bill forbids anyone or party from  damaging or defaming the character of any candidate or his family.

Election campaigns materials including posters, pamphlets, bills, advertisements, etc  prepared for the purpose of campaigning in an election shall bear the name and address of the political party, aspirant, candidate or person to whom/which they belong.

The bill is being  sponsored by Senator  Abubakar Kyari, Deputy National Chairman (North) of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The Senate passed the bill on July 13, 2021 but it is awaiting the input of the House of Representatives before the harmonization of grey sections.

In line with its plans to consider the bill, the House of Representatives will, on Tuesday, hold a public hearing on it.

It was learnt that the House might expedite action on the bill before next year’s  elections.

If passed into law, the commission will comprise an 18-man team of  chairman,  secretary, the Inspector-General of Police or his representative,  Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission or his representative;  Chairman, National Human Rights Commission or his representative;  Commandant General, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps or his representative; Director General Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit or his representative; and  Director-General Legal Aid Council of Nigeria or his representative; and others.

According to the bill, the commission shall have power to-investigate, arrest and prosecute any person, corporate body or organization –

• alleged to have committed an offence under this Bill, the Electoral Act 2022 or any other law relating to elections in force in the Federation or a part thereof,
• Alleged to have corruptly perverted or undermined the course of electoral justice.
• Adopt measures to prevent, minimize and eradicate the commission of electoral offences throughout the Federation.
• the seizure of any property (moveable or immoveable) that is used or suspected to be used in the Commission of an electoral offence;

Section 13(1 and 2) stipulates  a 15-year imprisonment for any candidate seeking elective office with forged documents or false  information to INEC or a state electoral commission.

It says: “Any person who – (1) knowingly makes any false statement on or in connection with any application to be placed on the National Register of Voters kept by the Independent National Electoral Commission; or (2) forges or fraudulently defaces or fraudulently destroys any document for the purpose of nomination for an elective office, or delivers to the Independent National Electoral Commission or a State Electoral Commission any document for the purpose of nomination for an elective office knowing it to be forged.”

Section 13(13) says any Nigerian who ” votes at any election when he is not entitled to vote, shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fifteen (15) years, or a minimum of N3,000,000 or both.”

The same punishment applies to anyone “who manufactures, constructs, imports, has in his possession, supplies or uses, or causes to be manufactured, constructed, imported, supplied or used, any appliance, device or mechanism by which a ballot paper or results of elections may be extracted.”

In Section 14, there is provision of a jail term, not exceeding 15 years for “anyone without due authority who  makes, prepares or prints a document or paper purporting to be a register of voters or a voter’s card; or (b) without due authority makes, prepares or prints any electoral document or purporting to be an electoral document”.

Section 15, the bill provides a 10 years’ imprisonment(without option of fine) for anyone who-

• willfully prevents any person from voting at the polling station at which he knows or has reasonable cause to believe such person is entitled to vote; or
• willfully rejects or refuses to count any ballot paper which he knows or has reasonable cause to believe is validly cast for any candidate in accordance with the provisions of such written law;
• willfully counts any ballot paper as being cast for any candidate, which he knows or has reasonable cause to believe was not validly cast for such candidate;
• gives false evidence or withholds evidence at the trial of an election petition for the purpose of perverting the course of justice;
• announces or declares a false result or a result which is false or he ought to know is false at an election

“A person who at an election applies for a ballot paper in the name of some other person, whether that name be that of a person living or dead, or of a fictitious person or who, having voted once at any such election, applies at the same election for a ballot paper in his own name, shall be guilty of the offence of personation and shall be liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a term of not more than one (1) year,” the bill says in Section 16.

The  bill,in Sections 17 and 18, bans  the use of thugs and vote buying with a 15-year imprisonment.

Section 17 reads: “A person shall be guilty of the offence of undue influence who directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person acting on his behalf, makes use of or threatens any force, violence or restraint, or any temporal or spiritual injury, damage or loss, or any fraudulent device, trick or deception, or social boycott, calamity of any kind, fear or promise, or by boast, coercion, blackmail or intimidation for the purpose of or on account of – (a) inducing or compelling a person to give or refrain from giving his vote, whether to a particular candidate or not, at an election; or (b) otherwise impeding or preventing the free exercise of the franchise of a voter; or (c) inducing or compelling a person to refrain from becoming a candidate or to withdraw if he has become a candidate; or Undue Influence  (d) impeding or preventing a person from being nominated as a candidate for an election or from being registered as a voter.

Section 18 says: ” A person shall be guilty of the offence of bribery who – (a) directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf, gives, lends, or agrees to give or lend, or offers, promises, or promises to procure or to endeavour to procure, any money or valuable consideration to or for any voter, or to or for any person on behalf of any voter or to or for any other person, in order to induce any voter to give or refrain from giving his vote, whether to a particular candidate or not, or does any such act as aforesaid on account of such voter having given or refrained from giving his vote at any election, whether to a particular candidate or not; or (b) directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf, gives or procures, or agrees to give or procure, or offers, promises, or promises to procure or to endeavor to procure, any office, place or employment to or for any voter, or to or for any person on behalf of any voter, or to or for any other person, in order to induce such voter to give or refrain from giving his vote, whether to a particular candidate or not, or does any such act as aforesaid on account of any voter having so given or refrained from giving his vote at any election; or (c) directly or indirectly by himself or by any other person on his behalf, makes any such gift, loan, offer, promise, procurement, or agreement as aforesaid to or for any person in order to induce such person to procure or endeavour to procure the election of any person, or the vote of any voter at any election; or (d) upon or in consequence of any such gift, loan, offer, promise, procurement or agreement, procures or engages, promises or endeavours to procure, the election of any person, or the vote of any voter at an election; or (e) advances or pays or causes to be paid any money to, or to the use of, any other person with the intent that such money or any part thereof shall be expended in bribery at any election or who knowingly pays or causes to be paid any money to any person in discharge or repayment of any money wholly or in part expended in bribery at any such election; or (f) being a voter, before or during any election directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf, receives, agrees, or contracts for any money, gift, loan, or valuable consideration, office, place or employment, for himself or for any other person, for giving or agreeing to give or for refraining or agreeing to refrain from giving his vote, whether to a particular candidate or not, at any such election; or (g) after any election, directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf, receives any money or valuable consideration on account of any person having given or refrained from giving or having induced any other person to give or to refrain from giving, his vote, whether to a particular candidate or not, at any such election; or (h) directly or indirectly, by himself or by any other person on his behalf, on account of and as payment for voting or for having voted or for agreeing or having agreed to vote for any candidate at an election, or on account of and as payment for his having assisted or agreed to assist any candidate at an election, applies to such candidate, or to his agent or agents,; for the gift or loan of any money or valuable consideration, or for the promise of the gift or loan of any money or valuable consideration or for Bribery 8 any office, place or employment or for the promise of any office, place or employment; or (i) directly or indirectly, by himself or by any person on his behalf, in order to induce any other person to agree to be nominated as a candidate or to refrain from becoming a candidate or to withdraw if he has become a candidate, gives or procures any office, place or employment, or agrees to give or procure or offers or promises to procure or to endeavor to procure any office, place or employment, to or for such other person, or gives or lends, or agrees to give or lend, or offers, or promises to procure or to endeavour to procure any money or valuable consideration to or for any person or to or for such other person, or to or for any person on behalf of such other person.”

Regarding overzealous candidate and agents, the bill recommends a 20-year jail term or a N40millon fine or both.

Section 26(1 and 2) says: “No candidate or agent of his or any other person shall grab, loot, damage or destroy in any manner ballot boxes or ballot papers or any other electoral document or material before, during or after an election, or take or attempt to take or cause to be taken ballot boxes or ballot papers or any other electoral document or material before, during or after an election without the permission of election official in charge of the election at a polling station or election official in charge of the electoral materials or abet to the commission of such act or cause obstruction of any kind in any manner to any other acts relating to an election.

“Any person who commits any act in contravention of sub-clause (1) of this clause shall be guilty of an electoral offence and liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a term of at least Twenty (20) years or a fine of at least Forty Million Naira (N40,000,000).

For any election official or security personnel, it is an offence for him or her to abet or aid a candidate to win any election.

Such officials risk at least six (6) months or a fine of at least Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000), or both.

Section 21 says: ” No person, including election official or security personnel, engaged by the Independent National Electoral Commission or a State Electoral Commission for the conduct of an election shall, in the course performing his official duties, perform or cause to be performed any act, except the act of giving his vote for any candidate according to law, with an intention of making any particular candidate successful or unsuccessful in the election.

” Any person who commits an act in contravention of sub-clause (1) of this Clause shall be guilty of an offence of breach of electoral peace and liable, on conviction to imprisonment for a term of at least six (6) months or a fine of at least Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000), or both. Election official, security personnel not to cause influence

According to Section 23, it attracts a 10 years in jail to damage or defame any candidate for an elective office.

Election campaigns materials including posters, pamphlets, bills, advertisements etc. prepared for the purpose of campaigning in an election shall bear the name and address of the political party, aspirant, candidate or person to whom/which they belong.

It reads: “No person acting for himself or on behalf of any organization or political party or candidate or his agent or other person shall, with an intention of prejudicing the result of any election, damage or defame, in any manner, the character of any candidate in an election or his family member by making, saying, printing, publishing, distributing, posting up, airing, or televising, or cause to be made, said, printed, published, distributed, posted up, aired or televised, before or during any election, any matter in the print or electronic media including radio, television, the Internet, online or social media, which he knows or believes to be false in relation to the personal character or conduct of the candidate or his family member or by making false accusation on any matter in a manner likely to make others believe such matter to be true.

“Any person who commits an act in contravention of sub-clause (1) of this Clause shall be guilty of an offence of serious corrupt practice and liable, on conviction to imprisonment for a term of at least ten (10) years or a fine of at least Ten Million Naira (N10,000,000), or both