Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, has opposed a move to invite the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, to brief lawmakers on preparations for the 2027 general elections.
Kalu argued that INEC’s periodic public briefings were sufficient to address concerns about the commission’s preparations for the polls.
He made the remarks during Wednesday’s plenary while contributing to a motion moved by the Minority Whip, Mansur Soro, and the Deputy Minority Leader, Abdulsamad Dasuki.
The lawmakers had proposed inviting Amupitan to brief the House on INEC’s preparations for the elections.
Opposing the prayer seeking the chairman’s appearance before the House, Kalu said inviting him and his team with about 80 days remaining before the elections could distract the commission from its preparations.
He maintained that the commission’s existing public communication channels provided an avenue for addressing concerns about the electoral process.
According to him, all other concerns beyond INEC’s public briefings should be channelled to the relevant Standing Committee of the House constitutionally mandated to interface with the Commission.
Kalu argued that inviting INEC before the full House at this time risks causing panic and eroding public confidence in the electoral process.
He noted that the Commission has complied with the Electoral Act and is already responding to concerns through its public statements.
To avoid security risks and undue pressure on the Commission, the Deputy Speaker maintained that the committee should handle such matters, describing this as the House in miniature.
Kalu added that the House, as,s the bastion of democracy, should be canvassing support for the Commission, stressing that the timing of any plenary inquisition is wrong when INEC is in the middle of public engagement and preparations for the elections.
He said: ‘Mr Speaker, I have gone through this well-written motion by my brother, Mansur Soro a, nd I have also taken cognisance of some paragraphs of this particular motion which have to do with awareness, concern and recognition paragraphs. Mr Speaker, it appears that when the chairman of INEC presented to the public not too long ago and addressed some of these concerns and questions, they were not listened to.
‘We are very serious about public engagement, concerning the preparations. Mr Speaker, they have not complained about logistics. They have started on time.
‘It is the committee of the House that has been given this responsibility to do so a, nd that is why I stand not in support of the prayer of this particular motion b, because supporting the prayer is belittling the mandate of the committee set up to carry out this function.
‘Inviting the Chairman of INEC to come and brief the House when he just briefed the entire nation is not ideal. Don’t we believe in our committees again? They are charged with the responsibilities, nd the chairmen of these committees are well educated and informed to carry out their responsibilities
‘Mr Speaker, based on that, I want to move that this prayer be changed to inviting INEC to meet with the committee for any briefing, not coming to the House’.
The proposed amendment of the Deputy Speaker to refer further concerns to the relevant committee of the House was later seconded by Hon. Babajimi Benson from Lagos.
When put to a voice vote by the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, who presided over plenary, the motion was overwhelmingly supported, prompting the Speaker to refer it to the House Committee on Electoral Matters.