A public policy expert, Dr Chibuzor Okereke has criticised gaps in Nigeria’s Electoral Act, saying the law lacks punitive measures against political parties that violate primary election guidelines.
Speaking during an interview with ARISE NEWS on Wednesday, Dr Okereke argued that weak enforcement mechanisms have allowed manipulation, irregularities, and non-compliance to persist within the country’s internal party processes.
“Section 77 of the Act provides for the party to use a membership register to conduct these processes. But it only prescribed it—it was like an advisory provision—and never mentioned how the parties are able to do so.
“The legislative intent of the Act is not what is being implemented by many parties. And the reason is simply obvious: the Act itself did not put punitive measures. For instance, it said the parties must use a voter register to conduct their primaries, but nothing will happen—there was no punitive provision as to what will happen if you don’t use the membership register submitted to INEC. And INEC is not advancing a copy of that register to you for that purpose; when they are monitoring, they simply observe your proceedings. So, these are the challenges we face,” he explained.
Okereke, however, said direct primaries have improved political participation and grassroots mobilisation, giving party members greater influence in candidate selection.
“But I think the direct primaries have opened the door for, at least, political activism, improved participation, and membership mobilization. Because today, through that direct primary process, members of a party can now see themselves participating in the primaries, although not in the manner that has been prescribed,” he said.
Addressing concerns ahead of the 2027 elections, Okereke warned that Nigeria’s political system is struggling with a lack of genuine democrats, arguing that internal party democracy continues to fall short despite recent electoral reforms.
“I think that we are playing democracy without democrats. We are not ready to make our democracy—our democratic process—work. And I wonder whether anybody is going to point an accusing finger at INEC in this 2027 election, because the political parties have been given the opportunity to show, to demonstrate democracy at work internally, and it appears to be failing in most of the things we have seen on the screen,” he noted.
Urging a shift towards stronger institutional frameworks, Okereke said this would improve leadership selection within parties and ensure more accountable governance, producing leaders capable of effective public service delivery.
“I also think about us staying away from individuals whom we want to classify as having the ‘golden idea’ to transform our country, and instead focus on building our system in such a manner that legitimacy to our democratic process is derived from people’s political literacy and ability to make a difference in our system.
“If we build systems and build institutions, we are then able to police our leadership recruitment gate, which is the political party. Once they are viable, we are able to throw up people that can be held accountable and deliver,” he urged.
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