Integrity Of Our Ballot System, Senator Sani Musa And INEC Contracts

By David Oluwafemi

On the 16^th day of February, 2019,
an alarm was raised in the media following the online publication
of This Day Newspaper on their platform https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2019/02/16/atiku-raises-the-alarm-over-partisanship-of-pvc-card-reader-manufacturer/^[1]
with the title: “Atiku Raises the Alarm over Partisanship
of PVC, Card Reader Manufacturer”. Part of the statement
reads:

It is public knowledge that Sani Musa, popularly known as
Sani 313 is a card carrying member of the APC and a close associate
of several stalwarts of the party, including President Muhammadu
Buhari who apparently pushed his nomination. But shockingly, the
APC Senatorial candidate for Zone B of Niger State, Mr. Mohammed
Musa, has a contract with INEC to supply key voting materials in an
election he is participating in, which is a clear conflict of
interest and raises questions of probity and oversight in the
issuing of INEC contracts. The INEC contract was to ‘upgrade’ the
card readers and to print PVC cards. Further investigations have
shown that the ‘upgrade’ consisted of pre-programming the card
readers to accept fake replica PVCs (copies of genuine PVCs) that
the firm printed in Nigeria. These two activities were undertaken
so that the APC could boost its vote tally in its strongholds or
force votes in Polling Units at PDP strongholds to be null and void
by over-voting. Our investigation also identified the seven states
where this activity was due to take place and we have therefore
informed the Observer Community and our own extensive network of
over 176,000 Party Agents so that they can forestall this activity
by checking cards as allowed under INEC guidelines,” Given that
Mrs. Musa’s previous company, Act Technologies, had a contract to
supply and install PVC card printers in the INEC Headquarters, it
does beg the question why Mr. Musa’s new company, Activate
Technologies, was given a subsequent contract to print PVC cards
itself?

On 17^th February, 2019, Senator
Shehu Sani made this confirmatory tweet on his verified tweeter
handle (@ShehuSani):

Fact; Alh Sani Musa is my friend, he’s also been in Niger
state politics for a long time. He is indeed the contractor who
supplied sensitive elections materials for 2015 elections materials
to INEC for 2015 elections. He is a card carrying member of the APC
& its present senatorial candidate for Niger East.

As observed by ace (The Electoral Knowledge Network) in its
publication on https://aceproject.org/ace-en/topics/ei/onePage^[2]
;

An election is the result of a complex process requiring the
participation of a multitude of players. There are winners and
losers in every election. The stakes are high, and there is a great
temptation to ensure victory through illegal or ethically
questionable (improper or even corrupt) means. Election results can
be rigged or disrupted to predetermine who will win or lose,
casting doubt on the legitimacy of the process.

In United Nations document A/66/314 (19 August 2011).
“Strengthening the role of the United Nations in enhancing the
effectiveness of the principle of periodic and genuine elections
and the promotion of democratization”. Report of the
Secretary-General. http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N11/458/24/PDF/N1145824.pdf?OpenElement^[3]., it is
aptly stated that:

The true measure of an election is whether it engenders
broad public confidence in the process and trust in the outcome. An
election run honestly and transparently, respecting basic rights,
with the effective and neutral support of State institutions and
the responsible conduct of participants (leaders, candidates and
voters) is most likely to achieve an accepted and peaceful
outcome

It is not in doubt that the foremost duty of the Independent
National Electoral Commission is to conduct a credible, free and
fair election the importance of which can never be over-emphasized
in our polity. It is in faithfully fulfilling this existential
mandate that the democracy of the nation is stabilised. That a man
who has declared his partisanship in the polity, proclaiming his
unalloyed loyalty to the All Progressives Congress (the political
party in power) is allowed to continue to handle electioneering
contracts even as a sitting Senator of the APC using different
companies he (remotely or directly) controls (Act
Technologies and Activate Technologies) is totally
unacceptable and should not be accommodated by a 21^st
century electoral umpire as it challenges the integrity of the
electoral processes thereby questions the legitimacy of the outcome
of such electoral processes.

It has been said that integrity in elections, depends on ethical
conduct by electoral administrators, election officers, candidates,
parties and all participants in the electoral process. This
suggests that all participants should behave in a way that
encourages a free and fair process, and that disheartens conduct
risking the integrity of the process. To achieve this, all
participants must carry out their duties or roles in a
professional, transparent and impartial manner.

Maybe, the INEC could be absolved of blameworthiness for
engaging this man for contractual works prior to his presenting
himself officially to seek public office. However, now that he is
occupying an elective post on the platform of the ruling party,
both morality and laws of the land demand that such contractual
relationships must cease forthwith. In other words, there should
not be any ground for the allegations raised by Alhaji Atiku
Abubakar in 2019 against Senator Sani Musa and the INEC to persist
as 2023 general election approaches. This is the duty of INEC.

Having recently released the electoral time table for the 2023
general elections, it means that the count down to the said
election has begun in earnest.  Many other competent
technology companies to handle INEC contracts abound other than
Act Technologies, Activate Technologies, and such
other companies behind which Senator Sani Musa hides to thrive in
conflict of interest which casts a pall of darkness on the
integrity of the system. This should worry all democrats who mean
well for the future of our country’s democracy. The time to halt
the aberration is now. It must be shouted loud and clear that the
integrity of the ballot box is not negotiable.

Written by David Oluwafemi

By David Oluwafemi

On the 16^th day of February, 2019,
an alarm was raised in the media following the online publication
of This Day Newspaper on their platform https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2019/02/16/atiku-raises-the-alarm-over-partisanship-of-pvc-card-reader-manufacturer/^[1]
with the title: “Atiku Raises the Alarm over Partisanship
of PVC, Card Reader Manufacturer”. Part of the statement
reads:

It is public knowledge that Sani Musa, popularly known as
Sani 313 is a card carrying member of the APC and a close associate
of several stalwarts of the party, including President Muhammadu
Buhari who apparently pushed his nomination. But shockingly, the
APC Senatorial candidate for Zone B of Niger State, Mr. Mohammed
Musa, has a contract with INEC to supply key voting materials in an
election he is participating in, which is a clear conflict of
interest and raises questions of probity and oversight in the
issuing of INEC contracts. The INEC contract was to ‘upgrade’ the
card readers and to print PVC cards. Further investigations have
shown that the ‘upgrade’ consisted of pre-programming the card
readers to accept fake replica PVCs (copies of genuine PVCs) that
the firm printed in Nigeria. These two activities were undertaken
so that the APC could boost its vote tally in its strongholds or
force votes in Polling Units at PDP strongholds to be null and void
by over-voting. Our investigation also identified the seven states
where this activity was due to take place and we have therefore
informed the Observer Community and our own extensive network of
over 176,000 Party Agents so that they can forestall this activity
by checking cards as allowed under INEC guidelines,” Given that
Mrs. Musa’s previous company, Act Technologies, had a contract to
supply and install PVC card printers in the INEC Headquarters, it
does beg the question why Mr. Musa’s new company, Activate
Technologies, was given a subsequent contract to print PVC cards
itself?

On 17^th February, 2019, Senator
Shehu Sani made this confirmatory tweet on his verified tweeter
handle (@ShehuSani):

Fact; Alh Sani Musa is my friend, he’s also been in Niger
state politics for a long time. He is indeed the contractor who
supplied sensitive elections materials for 2015 elections materials
to INEC for 2015 elections. He is a card carrying member of the APC
& its present senatorial candidate for Niger East.

As observed by ace (The Electoral Knowledge Network) in its
publication on https://aceproject.org/ace-en/topics/ei/onePage^[2]
;

An election is the result of a complex process requiring the
participation of a multitude of players. There are winners and
losers in every election. The stakes are high, and there is a great
temptation to ensure victory through illegal or ethically
questionable (improper or even corrupt) means. Election results can
be rigged or disrupted to predetermine who will win or lose,
casting doubt on the legitimacy of the process.

In United Nations document A/66/314 (19 August 2011).
“Strengthening the role of the United Nations in enhancing the
effectiveness of the principle of periodic and genuine elections
and the promotion of democratization”. Report of the
Secretary-General. http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N11/458/24/PDF/N1145824.pdf?OpenElement^[3]., it is
aptly stated that:

The true measure of an election is whether it engenders
broad public confidence in the process and trust in the outcome. An
election run honestly and transparently, respecting basic rights,
with the effective and neutral support of State institutions and
the responsible conduct of participants (leaders, candidates and
voters) is most likely to achieve an accepted and peaceful
outcome

It is not in doubt that the foremost duty of the Independent
National Electoral Commission is to conduct a credible, free and
fair election the importance of which can never be over-emphasized
in our polity. It is in faithfully fulfilling this existential
mandate that the democracy of the nation is stabilised. That a man
who has declared his partisanship in the polity, proclaiming his
unalloyed loyalty to the All Progressives Congress (the political
party in power) is allowed to continue to handle electioneering
contracts even as a sitting Senator of the APC using different
companies he (remotely or directly) controls (Act
Technologies and Activate Technologies) is totally
unacceptable and should not be accommodated by a 21^st
century electoral umpire as it challenges the integrity of the
electoral processes thereby questions the legitimacy of the outcome
of such electoral processes.

It has been said that integrity in elections, depends on ethical
conduct by electoral administrators, election officers, candidates,
parties and all participants in the electoral process. This
suggests that all participants should behave in a way that
encourages a free and fair process, and that disheartens conduct
risking the integrity of the process. To achieve this, all
participants must carry out their duties or roles in a
professional, transparent and impartial manner.

Maybe, the INEC could be absolved of blameworthiness for
engaging this man for contractual works prior to his presenting
himself officially to seek public office. However, now that he is
occupying an elective post on the platform of the ruling party,
both morality and laws of the land demand that such contractual
relationships must cease forthwith. In other words, there should
not be any ground for the allegations raised by Alhaji Atiku
Abubakar in 2019 against Senator Sani Musa and the INEC to persist
as 2023 general election approaches. This is the duty of INEC.

Having recently released the electoral time table for the 2023
general elections, it means that the count down to the said
election has begun in earnest.  Many other competent
technology companies to handle INEC contracts abound other than
Act Technologies, Activate Technologies, and such
other companies behind which Senator Sani Musa hides to thrive in
conflict of interest which casts a pall of darkness on the
integrity of the system. This should worry all democrats who mean
well for the future of our country’s democracy. The time to halt
the aberration is now. It must be shouted loud and clear that the
integrity of the ballot box is not negotiable.

Written by David Oluwafemi