JUST IN: INEC Announces Next Step After Buhari Signed Electoral Bill

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said its management will hold an “extraordinary meeting” on Saturday following the signing of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill by President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday.

The meeting will offer the electoral body the opportunity to brainstorm on how the newly-signed Electoral Act will affect the 2023 election timetable and adjust accordingly.

It is expected that INEC will after the meeting issue a Notice of Election for the 2023 general elections to help facilitate preparations toward the polls by the commission and political parties, amongst others.

The notice usually contains the date for elections, timelines for party primaries, and guidelines for submission of party nomination forms, amongst others.

Festus Okoye, INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, said the commission will issue a statement “on the way forward” after its meeting on Saturday.

Okoye noted that “This (signing of the Electoral Act) is historic being the fourth time since the restoration of democracy in Nigeria in 1999 that the Electoral Act is repealed and re-enacted. It contains many progressive provisions that will facilitate the conduct of free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria.

“The nation now has the Electoral Act 2022 which replaces the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended). Together with the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the new Act constitutes the principal law to govern the conduct of future elections, including the 2023 General Election.

“Given the tight timelines contained in the new law, the Commission fully appreciates the importance of proceeding with their implementation in earnest.”