Human rights lawyer and political activist Kenneth Okonkwo has accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of pushing controversial electoral amendments out of fear that the party may soon implode.

Speaking during an interview with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday, Okonkwo argued that recent changes to Nigeria’s electoral framework, particularly provisions relating to party membership registers, are designed not to strengthen democracy but to “create mischief” and weaken opposition parties.

He said, “The opposition parties are grieved because democracy is in danger. How can you, less than two months, tell the opposition people they have to provide a digitalised membership register? That is in section 77.

“The whole idea of amendment of laws is to cure mischief. But the amendment of laws under APC is to create mischief. That is why Nigeria is mischievously going down the drain. Section 77 said that, of course, political parties are body corporates with perpetual succession and with a common seal that can sue and be sued in its own name. So the legal personality of a political party is guaranteed. Then, they should maintain a digital register that will contain the name, addresses, all local government polling units, and even the NIN, the National Identification Number of the members. And then this register is the one you must use. You can’t use any other register for your primaries.

“And 21 days to the time that you want to do your primary, you must submit it to INEC. And anybody whose name is not written in the register cannot vote or be voted for. All these things are to cage in the political parties. And they said any political party that does not submit that register is not eligible to field candidates. So you can see the booby traps. Of course, they are doing it also for self-preservation, because they know that APC will implode and to make it impossible that whoever is shortchanged by their dubious direct primary choice, which they are imposing on all the parties, cannot go to any other party to seek relief or to seek election. These are all the things they are doing for self-preservation and to emasculate and strangle the opposition. Of course, you know they will fail.”

Okonkwo also warned that Nigeria is “tilting towards anarchy,” pointing to the recent Federal Capital Territory (FCT) municipal elections, which he claimed were conducted under a law introduced just days before the vote.

He said, What I’m saying is that we are tilting towards anarchy. And you can see what is happening. FCT municipal election, for instance, was organised under an unknown law, a law that was promulgated three days before the time. No movement was restricted 24 hours almost before the election.” (AriseNews TV)

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