CDD: Power of incumbency diminished credibility of off-cycle polls

The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) says the outcome of off-cycle elections in Imo, Bayelsa and Kogi states were largely influenced by the incumbent governors in the states.

In its post-election analysis released on Monday, CDD said the incumbents abused their authorities to create an unfair level playing ground for other contenders.

“The abuse of the power of incumbency for unfair partisan party-political electoral advantage by the governing parties in the three states is a major factor posing a challenge to the conduct of election in the country,” the statement reads.

“The abuse of incumbency takes any or all of the following forms –  unequal access of opposition parties to state electronic media, the deployment of state resources, such as official state vehicles and staff for electioneering campaigns and the mobilization of voting banks by parties in power in the three states, and the denial of the display of billboards, the denial of access to campaign facilities and public spaces by opposition parties to convey their messages to the electoral by signage authorities. 

“These remain major fetters on the conduct of the three off-cycle elections that satisfied the conditions for electoral integrity.

“But the abuse of the power of incumbency was also deployed to distort the party primary process of the governing parties in two of the three states—Bayelsa and Imo—where the incumbent governors sought re-election for a final second term; and in the third state –Kogi–where the incumbent governor, unable to seek re-election, because he was serving out his final non-renewable second-term, used the full panoply of state power and resources to ensure the victory of his preferred candidate during the ruling party’s primary elections.

“The impact of the abuse of the power of incumbency, so illustrated, created an unfair level playing ground that gravely diminished the credibility of the off-cycle elections in the three states.” 

The organisation added that for electoral democracy to thrive, there is a need to “focus more seriously on political party reforms to ensure that they play a more responsible role instead of posing a problem for the nation”.