The bill proposed by the House of Representatives to create the Political Parties Registration and Regulation Commission (PPRRC) has drawn criticism from Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s (LP) presidential candidate, who cautioned that making another public institution will merely increase Nigeria’s financial burden.
According to reports, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and Marcus Onobun, who represent Edo State’s Esan Central/Esan West/Igueben Federal Constituency, are co-sponsoring the bill, which is presently being considered by the House Committee on Constitution Review.
If approved, it will change the Constitution’s Third Schedule, Sections 40, 81, 84, 153, 222, 225, 226, and 228. It will also give the new commission the authority to monitor, register, and control political parties, as well as to manage their internal democracy, primaries, finances, and general operations.
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Obi criticized the proposed change in an interview with The Punch through Tanko Yunusa, the National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, stating that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should be in charge of registering political parties.
According to the Justice Muhammad Uwais Report, we recommended the creation of an Enforcement Commission to uphold the laws governing legitimate elections and an Electoral Monitoring Committee to handle elections. According to Yunusa, the Delineation Commission is the third.
It would be foolish, Yunusa contended, to totally deprive INEC of its party registration function. He emphasized that changes should concentrate on addressing electoral irregularities rather than overlapping duties.
He continued by saying, “One of INEC’s main responsibilities is to register and oversee political parties, which you cannot totally take away from it. Since the Enforcement Commission will handle the problems of electoral fraud, the Constitution Review Committee ought to have focused on it. This will address election-related malpractices. It is possible to free INEC of this responsibility so that it can focus on party registration and election administration.
