Electoral offenders in the upcoming 2023 elections to be organized by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are liable to jail terms, with a maximum of 20 years.
This came after the House of Representatives passed for second reading a bill to establish the election offences tribunal, during plenary, on Thursday, June 30.
The Senate version of the bill—which combines numerous other bills—was discussed.
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The legislation mandates a 20-year prison sentence for ballot box snatchers.
Last year, the Senate passed the bill last year and sent it to the House for approval.
But because there are parallel bills in the House, it was decided to combine them all into one.
Mohammed Monguno, who led the discussion on the measure, claimed that it will make sure that only the appropriate candidates pass the procedure.
Aisha Dukku, the chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, commented on the bill and claimed that INEC lacked the ability to prosecute electoral offenders.
She claimed that the INEC will take over the prosecution of electoral criminals once it was established.
The bill was passed and then sent to the Committee on Electoral Matters for additional legislative action
