Duties and Problems Of Electoral Commission

Duties and Problems Of Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is headed by a Chairman appointed by the government. The Chairman oversees the work of the Commission and the activities of the members. The Chairman disciplines erring or disobedient staff and ensures the prosecution of anybody who committed electoral offences. The Chairman interprets the electoral laws and declares the winner at the end of the election. Finally, the Chairman controls the finance of the Commission and approves the recruitment and appointment of the lower officers of the commission. Below the Chairman at the National Level is the Secretary of the Commission.

The following are the duties of the Secretary:

1. In charge of correspondences
2. Head of personnel unit of the commission
3. Responsible and accountable to the Chairman for day to day running of the commission
4. Queries erring staff and recommends appropriate punishment to the Chairman
5. Acts as Chairman of the recruitment committee
6. Receives the election results from states at the end of election processes

Characteristics Of Electoral Commission

The essential of a good electoral commission are:

Duties Of Electoral Commission

Electoral Commission perform the following roles

1. Conduct elections
2. Registration of Voters
3. Constituency delimitation (division of constituencies)
4. Supervision of erection of polling booths
5. Appointment of presiding and returning officers
6. Registration of political parties
7. Compilation of voters register
8. Screening and registration of political aspirants, (candidate) who will contest the general election from each of the political parties
9. Provision of Security on the day of the election
10. Disqualification of certain people from contesting and voting
11. Announcement of the election result immediately after the election (declaration of winners)
12. Verification of Claims made by political parties for purposes of registration and issuing clearance certificates to certain category of political aspirants or contestants.

Problems of Electoral Commission

The commission is not provided with adequate security to carry out its job. On the voting day and in the distribution of electoral materials, as well as counting the votes, there is no adequate security to provide the necessary protection.