Nigeria's electoral body,  Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC by its establishing legislation cannot lay claims to be truly independent;  Its controlled by the Federal Government, and thus lacks capacity to guarantee  free and fair election, says Hon  Ned Nwoko, legal practitioner and member of the first parliament, 1999-2003

Nwoko, speaking  at a Democracy Day lecture titled, “Getting it Right Ahead of 2023” organised by the Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, FCT Council, Abuja argued that INEC should be made a First Line Charge agency to insulate it from the inteference of the Executive arm of government.

He added that such truly independent body should be administered by  an Umbdsman, an independent body comprising of 20 most popular pressure groups which would  to form the board

Such bodies like NBA, NANS, NUJ, NURTW, NMA, and others  should select from its members to form the board and its Principal Officer  rotated every two years. "We must get INEC working,  INEC is not working because as it is now Federal Government-controled INEC", he submitted

The former lawmaker further proffered that the Electoral Body  should be allowed to appoint its own officers

* Ned Nwoko, 2nd left and NUJ officials

Commission  to sensitive appointments in order to guarantee its  independence and capacity to deliver on  free and fair election in 2023.

Nwoko who represented Aniocha North/South and Oshimilli North and South in the Federal House of Representatives further proposed that the legislative provisions setting up the States Independent Electoral Commission, SIEC should be abrogated and their functions assumed by  the proposed  truly independent INEC.

SIEC, according to him can not work because it is a bogus arrangement that gives power to any party the controls the state.

"There should be only one truly independent central INEC that would be devoid of the influence of the Federal Government, that will have direct funding from the Federation account on statutory basis", he asserted.