Victor EzejaThe Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has adjusted the timetable for 2023 general elections in Nigeria.
According to the new timetable for the elections, Presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled to hold on February 25, 2023, while governorship and state assembly elections will now be held on March 11, 2023.
INEC had earlier announced February 18, 2023 for the presidential election.
The adjustment followed signing of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill into law by President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday February 25.
The commission had last week warned that if the president did not sign the Electoral Amendment Bill before February 22, it would force the commission to postpone the date of the 2023 presidential election.
Section 28(1) of the amended Electoral Act 2022 mandates the electoral body to issue notice for the elections not later than 360 days before the date of the elections.
The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu in a press briefing on Saturday February 26, said the commission had in 2017 adopted the practice of fixing dates for elections to create certainty in the electoral calendar and to enable all stakeholders in the electoral process to prepare adequately for elections.
He further stated that by that decision the Presidential and National Assembly elections are to hold on the third Saturday of the month of February of each General Election year, while Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections shall follow two weeks later, but the 2023 elections earlier scheduled for February 18 (Presidential and National Assembly) and March 4 (governorships and state assemblies) could not hold because the 360 days window of notification for the elections had elapsed before the signing of the Electoral Act by the president.
According to the INEC Chairman, “The Electoral Act provides strict timelines for the implementation of electoral activities based on the date of the General Election. One of the significant timelines is the publication of Notice of Election not later than 360 days before the day appointed for holding an election which has now lapsed for the 2023 General Election.
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“Consequently, the Commission has decided to adjust the dates of the 2023 General Election to ensure compliance with the provisions of the new law.
“Accordingly, the Presidential and National Assembly elections will now hold on Saturday 25th February 2023 while the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will hold two weeks later on Saturday 11th March 2023. With this adjustment, the 2023 General Election is now 363 days away.”
“Under the law, there are critical timebound activities from the publication of Notice of Election to the Conduct of Polls which form the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for elections,” Prof. Yakubu stated.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
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