The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has called for  full implementation of the  Justice Mohammed Uwais report on electorial reform for the  nation’s electoral system.

TUC President, Mr Festus Osifo made the call on Monday at a one day Public Hearing on a Bill for an Act to Repeal the Electoral Act No 13, 2022 and enact the Electoral Act 2025.

The public hearing was organised by the Joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on INEC. Osifo, represented by Mr Tolulope Akinyoye, an official of TUC , said the credibility of Nigeria’s democracy is repeatedly undermined by flawed elections, underscoring the need to implement the Uwais report.

We support  full implementation of the recommendations of the Justice Uwais electoral reform, which includes transfer of power, shifting the authority to appoint INEC commissioners and chairman from the President to the National Judicial Council (NJC).

Criminalisation of vote buying, pre-election violence with enforcing sanctions,restructuring and unbundling INEC to improve its effectiveness. Establishing a specific timeline for resolving election disputes and implementing modern technology, such as biometric data capture, electronic voting, and electronic transmission of results among others.” He said the recommendations aimed to enhance the integrity and transparency of Nigeria’s electoral process.

According to him , credible elections is not only about votes but about giving voice to working class, ensuring that governments reflect the  will of the people. Osifo recommended the protection of workers’ political rights, saying that the act should explicitly safeguard rights of Nigerian workers, including those in public sector and private sectors.

He said workers should freely participate in political activities without fear of intimidation, harassment or loss of employment. We believe that no worker should be penalised for exercising their constitutional right to vote, campaign or belong to a political party.

Democracy loses its meaning, when workers are afraid to express their political preferences,we believe that the productive backbone of the nation as workers must be protected from victimisation by employers and political authorities for participating in civic activities.

Political neutrality in workplaces should not translate to political violence, we also recommend that election days and voter periods should be recognised as public holidays to enable all categories of workers, including shifts and factory workers, to participate fully in the electoral process.”

He also recommended organised labour participation at electoral stakeholder forums and voter education programmes to protect  interest of  the working class. We also believe that campaign financing provisions should be reviewed to reduce financial barriers to political participation.

“Reasonable limits should be placed on campaign expenditure and corporate donations to prevent  marginalisation of qualified workers who are candidates and to promote a level playing field for Nigerians.”

The TUC president also recommended that the act strengthened speedy resolution of election-related grievances and explicitly prohibit any form of workplace victimisation based on political preference or participation.

“The law should establish strict timelines for adjudicating on electoral petitions to restore public confidence and ensure accountability.

“We also recommend that INEC collaborate with trade unions to conduct mobile voter registration exercises within major workplaces, industrial areas and informal sector clusters to ensure wider participation of the working population.”

Osifo also called for promotion of affirmative action in the act to encourage women and persons with disabilities within the workforce to seek elective and appointive positions for gender equality and inclusion.

“We further advocate for enforcement of quota for women and persons with disabilities,especially within trade unions and political structures.”

He said a democracy that excludes half of its population from the political process cannot be said to achieve full legitimacy, saying that the working citizens remained key to future development of the electoral process.

NAN reports that several Civil Society Organisations,  Political Groups, Pressure Groups among other interest groups made presentations on the bill to repeal the electoral act No 13 2022 and enact the electoral act 2025.