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By Michael Boda

While Nigerians edge their way toward democracy under a "Transition to Civil Rule" decree pushed forward by the country's current head of state and military leader, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, the legal foundation for their right to vote is unique among most other democracies.

Nigeria currently lacks a constitution, complicating the work of election officials who often find their mandate for running an election in this creed.

With this in mind, Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has devised a solution that has offered credibility to the electoral process among candidates, political parties and voters in advance of the transition of power scheduled for May 29, 1999.

In the United States, the Constitution assures universal suffrage among citizens. Article XV states that the right to vote will not be denied based on race, color or previous condition of servitude. Article XIX enshrines the vote for women.

In India, the world's largest democracy, the right to vote for all adults is described in that country's constitution, which was adopted in 1950.

South Africa, a newer democracy, first laid the foundation for universal adult suffrage in a constitution passed in preparation for its premier democratic elections held in April 1994.

In each of these countries, a constitution provides the principal direction for electoral legislation, regulations and codes of conduct that direct the voting process.

This has not been the case in Nigeria, however, where progress on assembling a constitution moved slowly until the death of the country's former military leader, Gen. Sani Abacha, in June 1998.

Abacha's successor, Abubakar, has since quickened the pace by appointing a Constitutional Debate Commission to complete a document based on two earlier attempts -- one from the Abacha era and another from the last period of civilian rule in Nigeria, which lasted from 1979 to 1983.

Once completed, the Nigerian Constitution will undergird the transition to civilian rule. Still, a constitution will not be available to lend credibility to the elections scheduled in advance of the May transition. Elections for local governments, governors and state assemblies, the National Assembly and president, all will have been held without a constitutional mandate.

While conducting elections may not be backed by a constitution in Nigeria, international law certainly reinforces the process. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in 1948, lists a variety of basic rights and freedoms, including the right to vote.

According to Article 21, "[E]veryone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives. ... The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of the government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures."

This document is not in itself binding, but it "has acquired the status of customary international law in terms of the broad respect it enjoys," say Harry Barnes and David Carroll in an Elections Today article that focuses on voting as a human right.

In addition, Nigeria is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, a subsequent agreement that embodies the concepts outlined in the Universal Declaration.

Article 25 of the Covenant states, "Every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity ... a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen representatives; b) To vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors; c) To have access, on general terms of equality, to public service in his country."

While international law is important, its practical impact is often quite limited. Without a constitution, the Independent National Electoral Commission has been forced to devise an alternative legislative tool until a new constitution is assembled and accepted by Nigerians.

To bridge the gap, the Commission has released a series of "electoral guidelines" that describe the overall direction most often outlined in a constitution and provide the basic ground rules typically found in election law.

The guidelines include the basic parameters for the election and the qualifications for candidates, political parties and voters. Further, they outline that voting will be by secret ballot and describe the voting regulations to be followed on election day.

For the three elections held since December, electoral guidelines issued by the Commission have won the support of the public. The candidates, parties and voters have generally accepted them as the "rules of the game."

The elections could not have been implemented, however, without further detail being offered on the voting process. Poll workers tasked with managing the vote at individual polling stations on election day require step-by-step guidance that simply is not found in the electoral guidelines.

For the Nigerian National Assembly and presidential elections, INEC and the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) have created a "Manual for Poll Officials" that offers this fundamental direction.

Created with financial assistance from Canada and Britain, an inaugural version of this manual was published for the governorship and state House of Assembly elections in January 1999. Based on feedback from poll workers, the publication was improved and updated for the most recent round of elections.

After 15 years of military rule, Nigeria's INEC has assembled an initial voting system for the country's transitional elections that can facilitate the transfer of power from a military to civilian government on May 29.

While the timelines have been short, the infrastructure assembled has thus far proven credible during the elections leading to the presidential race scheduled for February 27.

Clearly, the legal framework necessary for maintaining democratic electoral practices in the long term -- including a constitution, election law and regulations -- is not yet in place. Still, Nigerians have made notable progress toward this eventual goal.

Michael Boda is editor of Elections Today and deputy director of the F. Clifton White Resource Center at IFES, the International Foundation for Election Systems.

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