CUPP backs senate move to shift burden of proof to INEC

…Seeks Electoral Offences Tribunal

By John Alechenu, Abuja

The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has expressed enactment for the Senate’s determination to amend cardinal provisions of the Electoral Act, describing it arsenic a bold and progressive measurement toward electoral justice.

The conjugation peculiarly hailed the connection to displacement the load of impervious successful predetermination petitions from aggrieved candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

National Secretary of the coalition, Chief Peter Ameh, stated this successful Abuja connected Thursday portion responding to questions from Vanguard.

He said the projected amendment marks a large departure from the longstanding signifier wherever petitioners — often idiosyncratic candidates with constricted resources — carnivore the dense work of proving electoral irregularities.

“Under the caller framework, INEC, arsenic the custodian of the electoral process, volition present beryllium legally obligated to show that elections were conducted successful enactment with the highest standards of integrity and owed process,” Ameh said.

According to him, if enacted and implemented successful bully faith, the betterment could alteration Nigeria’s electoral jurisprudence by easing the evidential and fiscal load connected petitioners and ensuring greater transparency and fairness.

He added that holding INEC accountable for its actions oregon inactions would heighten nationalist spot successful the electoral strategy and reaffirm that nary instauration is supra scrutiny successful safeguarding the sanctity of the ballot.

“As a federation inactive healing from the scars of contentious polls, this determination is simply a timely antidote to the cynicism that has eroded religion successful our electoral system,” Ameh noted.

He further stressed that portion Nigeria’s electoral laws are mostly adequate, challenges persist owed to the behaviour of immoderate INEC officials, some advertisement hoc and permanent, who compromise the process.

The CUPP scribe truthful called for the constitution of an Electoral Offences Tribunal oregon Commission to prosecute offenders swiftly, ensuring that perpetrators of electoral fraud look the afloat value of the law.

The station CUPP backs legislature determination to displacement load of impervious to INEC appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.