Former Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, has called for comprehensive reforms of Nigeria’s electoral system to enhance transparency and accountability.
Speaking on Arise Television, Dickson emphasized that it is time to hold the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) accountable for its role in elections. As a member of the Senate Committee on Electoral Matters, he argued that candidates cannot be expected to prove outcomes that are solely controlled by the Commission.
Dickson stressed that elections should be a celebration of the nation’s strengths, not a period marked by violence, killings, or manipulation.
“One of the key proposals under review in the ongoing Electoral Act amendment is to place the burden of proof in election disputes on INEC, rather than on candidates or political parties,” he explained.
He added, “Elections should be moments where we rediscover ourselves as a nation and celebrate our best qualities, not moments where people kill, maim, or manipulate figures to claim victory without the people’s mandate. The burden of proof in electoral matters rightly belongs to INEC; it should not be left to those who merely raise allegations.”
