Ekiti state governor and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Kayode Fayemi, has accused the national assembly of giving an impression of a hidden agenda with the clause added on electronic tranmission of election results.
He made this known while reacting to the move of the national assembly to give the Nigerian Communications Commission the power to decide on electronic transmission of election results, which must also be approved by federal lawmakers.
Fayemi in an interview on Channels Television, warned against over-regulating the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). He said the clause empowering the NCC and the National Assembly to be the final arbiter in determining usage of electronic transmission of results for elections amounted to compromising the INEC.
He said;
“INEC should be allowed to independently determine how election results are transmitted and not be overregulated while discharging its constitutional duties. I feel that the hullabaloo around this could have been avoided.
“If I have the opportunity to be asked, I would actually argue that we leave this matter for the electoral commission to handle, rather than micromanage the electoral commission or bring in the Nigerian Communications Commission or the National Assembly to be an arbiter on what happens to electronic transmission.
“I frankly think things could have been handled differently and it is unfortunate that it has been handled the way it has been handled. It is giving an impression that there is some surreptitious or hidden agenda, which there isn’t.”