Read 2015 and 30,000 PUs: Plans to rig presidential poll exposed! here
1993 – 1997 – Muhammed Alli (northerner) was in the saddle as DG, NEC, and created PUs; another northerner; Jega, another Northerner wants to add more in the most lopsided manner.
1996 – Even at that and unlike what is being forced on the nation now, the two foundational stages of delimitation of constituencies and ward review were conducted (as conditions precedent) before the PUs were created.
After Alli prepared the ground works concluded in 1997, Chief Sumner Dagogo-Jack was appointed NECON Chairman and was made to adopt the report because of the impending transition which was still a year away.
Notable features of that exercise included but were not limited to the reduction of federal constituencies from 450 to 360; electoral wards from a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 20 per LGA; 66 state constituencies suppressed arbitrarily as part of the cost-cutting measures
1997 – Local Govt Council elections on party basis held in March
1998 – Legislative Assembly elections (State, House of Reps, and Senate) on party basis were held. Governorship and Presidential elections scheduled next but never held following death of Abacha
1998 – INEC created, adopted the delimitation regime of NECON
2008 – The only time Pus were to be created under a southerner, Prof Maurice Iwu, only one northerner national commissioner (Jumare Mohammed) in a Board of INEC with southern commissioners in the majority (Prof. lwu (Chairman), Bar. Philip Umeadi, Victor Chukwuani and Mr. Solomon Soyebi, protested. Why is it that today on the same PUs matter, Jega has ignored the voices of five commissioners from the South, RECs, the Senate, and even political parties?
2012 – Just as Jega is pressing hard on the creation of PUs at all costs, and against all advice, so also he insisted on fresh delimitation review exercise planning to use 2006 census controversial figures when a new census is just around the corner. Again, egged on by what an insider described as a pure northern agenda, he insisted. The Senate that has final approval advised against the move but so much money had been committed to it, an act described as a part move to access over a billion naira in INEC’s account on that exercise.
2014 – Attempts to foist on the nation a hastily contrived, ill-motivated and ill-timed delimitation review collapsed and now the INEC boss has embarked on another ill-advised PUs creation just three months to election against all advice thereby creating an unfortunate image for INEC and himself as an interested party to help politicians have unfair advantage in the 2015 elections.
NOTE:
*PUs and RAs are naturally reviewed jointly just as Federal and State Constituencies flow together. The present review is in bad taste and faith.
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