Afari-Gyan to address Nigeria’s senators’ retreat on reform

Nigeria’s Senate ad-hoc committee reviewing the country’s 1999 Constitution has invited the chairman of the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, to speak at its forthcoming retreat in Kaduna State. Also expected to speak at the forum, which will be attended by the Speakers of the 36 states’ houses of assembly, is the chairperson of the defunct Electoral Reform Committee and former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Muhammadu Uwais. The retreat will hold on October 8 and 9, 2009. A statement, on Sunday, in Abuja, by the Office of the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who also heads the 44-member committee, said Dr. Afari-Gyan’s presentation is titled “Designing Electoral Laws for Effective Election Management: Global and Regional Perspective.” The topic, according to the statement, will touch on the legal framework for elections, constitutional courts and independent candidacy among other issues. “As you might be aware, Dr Afari-Gyan is the Chairman of the Ghanaian Electoral Commission and has a good knowledge of international standards and best practices on electoral matters as well as vast experience in election management,” the statement by Paul Odenyi, Mr Ekweremadu’s aide, said. Mr. Odenyi also said the Electoral Commission boss has confirmed his coming. Dr. Afari-Gyan-led Ghana’s election commission has successfully organized four general elections in the last 11 years. The elections are those that brought former President Jerry Rawlings into his last term in office, brought former President John Kufuor to power as well as his re-election. He also led the body in the election that brought the incumbent, John Atta Mills, to power early this year. Mr. Afari-Gyan was a member of the ECOWAS fact-finding team on the 2007 general elections in Nigeria. The six-member team, led by former Gambian President Dauda Jawara, appraised the preparations for the April 2007 election which brought President Umaru Yar’Adua to power. International support Mr. Ekweremadu had, earlier this month, said that the ad-hoc committee would seek technical assistance from international organizations in the task of reviewing the 1999 Constitution. Already, the committee has written to America’s National Democratic Institute for assistance. The decision is aimed at bringing in an international expert in the field of constitution and electoral laws as well as electoral management. The Senate ad-hoc committee is embarking on a separate amendment process from that of the House which is chaired by Deputy Speaker Usman Nafada. Both committees had disagreed over the position of Mr. Nafada in the National Assembly Joint Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution. The House committee has already conducted public hearings into the six bills forwarded to the National Assembly by President Umaru Yar’Adua. Its Senate counterpart, it was learnt, will organize hearings on the bills after the retreat in Kaduna. Source: Next.com