The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) failed to attend its election-monitoring training for members of the National Anti-Corruption Coalition (NACC), despite repeated efforts to secure its participation.
The ICPC said INEC’s absence prevented discussions on formalising a partnership that would enable officials of the anti-corruption commission to monitor elections alongside NACC members, particularly at the state level, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The commission’s Director of Public Enlightenment and Education, Mr Demola Bakare, disclosed this while responding to concerns raised by participants at the training programme.
Bakare said the ICPC had made several attempts to persuade INEC to attend or send representatives to the programme but was unsuccessful.
“Regrettably, we invited INEC but INEC was not represented. All efforts to bring them into the programme till the last minute failed,” he said.
He explained that he had dispatched a deputy director to lead a team to persuade INEC to participate, adding that the team made two or three attempts without success.
According to him, the ICPC had monitored elections in the past but wanted to formalise its collaboration with NACC to strengthen coordination and improve the effectiveness of election observation.
He said the proposed arrangement would involve deploying ICPC officials alongside NACC members to observe elections, particularly at the state level.
“We want to formalise it so that we can go along with it. For example, in the states, we deploy our officials with NACC members to observe the election together. That was what we wanted to negotiate with INEC, but unfortunately they did not come,” Bakare added.
The training was organised to equip NACC members with the skills required for effective election monitoring and grassroots anti-corruption advocacy ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Participants said INEC’s involvement was essential to ensuring effective collaboration between the electoral body and civil society organisations working to promote credible elections.
Mr Idris Abu, a NACC member and Executive Director of the Organisation of People’s Voice, said the programme focused on two key areas: accessing grants to sustain grassroots anti-corruption advocacy and improving participants’ capacity to communicate the ICPC’s anti-corruption message to ordinary Nigerians.
He described INEC as a critical stakeholder whose participation would have strengthened the engagement.
Abu said the electoral body’s absence raised concerns about coordination among institutions expected to work together to promote electoral transparency.
“How can ICPC be organising a programme to prepare civil society to monitor elections and INEC, the main actor, is absent? It shows a lack of respect for stakeholders,” he said.
He questioned how effectively INEC would cooperate with election observers during the general elections if it did not participate in preparatory engagements.
Abu added that NACC members across the country were ready to take anti-corruption and electoral-integrity messages to the grassroots but needed INEC’s cooperation, particularly on voter education, access to information and monitoring of vote-buying.
He urged the electoral commission’s leadership to take stakeholder engagement seriously, warning that inadequate cooperation among INEC, the ICPC and NACC could undermine efforts to tackle electoral corruption at the grassroots.
Similarly, another NACC member from Osun State, Mr Jare Tiamiyu, expressed disappointment over INEC’s absence, describing the invitation as an opportunity for two public institutions to strengthen their cooperation.
“If ICPC, a constitutionally recognised agency, is inviting INEC and INEC is not responding, how do you think that any group or agency will invite INEC and they will respond?” he asked.
Tiamiyu stressed the importance of openness and timely engagement among public institutions, arguing that agencies should not wait for crises before responding to invitations for collaboration.
Another participant, Mr Felix Ojo, a NACC member and journalist, also urged INEC to prioritise engagements aimed at strengthening electoral integrity.
However, a senior official in the office of the INEC chairman, who requested anonymity, denied that the commission had deliberately stayed away from the programme.
The official said INEC was involved in several activities in preparation for the 2027 general elections and would not intentionally disregard an invitation from the ICPC.
The official described the ICPC as a critical stakeholder in the fight against electoral corruption, particularly vote-buying and other electoral offences.
According to the official, the relationship between INEC and the ICPC had remained cordial, productive and mutually beneficial in pursuit of their shared objective of delivering credible elections.
“At no time did INEC decline to collaborate with ICPC on election monitoring. On the contrary, INEC has always welcomed election observation and monitoring by ICPC, NACC and other credible bodies, in line with extant laws and guidelines,” the official said.
The official added that INEC’s record of accrediting election observers, including ICPC officials, during previous elections demonstrated its willingness to collaborate with relevant stakeholders.
The commission maintained that its absence from the training should not be interpreted as a rejection of cooperation with the ICPC on election monitoring.
