MCC: MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE GUIDANCE OF POLITICAL PARTIES AND CANDIDATES
1. General Conduct
(1) Political parties and candidates shall participate in the electoral process in a peaceful, democratic and transparent manner and conduct the electoral campaign in a positive manner.
(2) Political parties and candidates shall accept and comply in full with the provisions of the Federal Constitution and applicable laws and regulations at all times.
(3) Political parties and candidates shall accept the legitimate outcomes of the election or appeal before the relevant Court, according to the electoral laws;
(4) No party or candidate shall participate in any activity which may aggravate existing differences or create mutual hatred or cause tension between different ethnic or religious communities.
(5) Criticism of other political parties, when made, shall be confined to their policies and programmes, past record and work. Parties and candidates shall refrain from criticism of all aspects of private life not connected with the public activities of the leaders or workers of other parties. Criticism of other parties or their workers based on unverified allegations or distortion shall be avoided.
(6) There shall be no appeal to race, religion or communal feelings for securing votes. Mosques, Churches, Temples or other places of worship shall not be used as forums for election propaganda.
(7) All parties and candidates shall avoid scrupulously all activities which are “corrupt practices” and offences under the election law, such as bribing of voters, intimidation of voters, impersonation of voters, canvassing within 50 meters of polling stations, holding public meetings during the period of 48 hours ending with the hour fixed for the opening of the poll.
(8.) The right of every individual to peaceful and undisturbed home-life shall be respected, however much the political parties or candidates may resent his political opinions or activities. Organising demonstrations or picketing before the houses of individuals by way of protesting against their opinions or activities shall not be resorted to under any circumstances.
(9) No political party or candidate shall permit its or his followers to make use of any individual’s land, building, compound wall etc., without his permission for erecting flag-staffs, suspending banners, pasting notices, writing slogans etc.
(10) Political parties and candidates shall ensure that their supporters do not create obstructions in or break up meetings and processions organised by other parties. Members, workers, volunteers and/or sympathisers of one political party shall not create disturbances at public meetings organised by another political party by putting questions orally or in writing or by distributing leaflets of their own party. Processions shall not be conducted, organised or hosted by one party along places at which meetings are held by another party. Posters issued by one party shall not be removed by workers of another party.
II. Public Meetings
(1) The party or candidate shall inform the local police authorities of the venue and time of any proposed public meeting well in time so as to enable the police to make necessary arrangements for controlling traffic and maintaining peace and order.
(2) Organisers of a public meeting shall invariably seek the assistance of the police on duty for dealing with persons disturbing the meeting or otherwise attempting to create disorder. Organisers themselves shall not take action against such persons.
III Procession
(1) A Party or candidate organising a procession shall decide beforehand the time and place of the starting of the procession, the route to be followed and the time and place at which the procession will terminate. There shall ordinarily be no deviation from the programme.
(2) The organisers shall give advance notice to the local police authorities of the programme.
(3) The organisers shall take steps in advance to arrange for passage of the procession so that there is no block or hindrance to traffic. If the procession is very long, it shall be organised in segments of suitable lengths, so that at convenient intervals, especially at points where the procession has to pass road junctions, the passage of held up traffic could be allowed by stages thus avoiding heavy traffic congestion.
(5) Processions shall be so regulated as to keep as much to the right of the road as possible and the direction and advice of the police on duty shall be strictly complied with.
(6) If two or more political parties or candidates propose to take processions over the same route or parts thereof at about the same time, the organisers shall establish contact well in advance and decide upon the measures to be taken to see that the processions do not clash or cause hindrance to traffic. The assistance of the local police shall be availed of for arriving at a satisfactory arrangement. For this purpose the parties shall contact the police at the earliest opportunity.
(7) The political parties or candidates shall exercise control to the maximum extent possible in the matter of participants carrying articles which may be put to misuse by undesirable elements especially in moments of excitement.
(8.) The carrying of effigies purporting to represent members of other political parties or their leaders, burning such effigies in public and such other forms of demonstration shall not be allowed by any political party or candidate.
IV. Polling Day
All political parties and candidates shall –
(i) co-operate with the officers on election duty to ensure peaceful and orderly polling and complete freedom to the voters to exercise their franchise without being subjected to any annoyance or obstruction.
(ii) supply to their authorised members, workers and/or volunteers suitable badges or identity cards.
(iii) agree that the identity slip supplied by them to voters shall be on plain (white) paper and shall not contain any symbol, name of the candidate or the name of the party;
(iv) refrain from serving or distributing liquor on polling day and during the forty eight hours preceding it
(v) not allow unnecessary crowd to be collected near the camps set up by the political parties and candidates near the polling booths so as to avoid confrontation and tension among workers and sympathisers of the parties and the candidate.
(vi) ensure that the candidate’s camps shall be simple. They shall not prominently display any posters, flags, symbols or any other propaganda material. (vii) co-operate with the authorities in complying with the restrictions to be imposed on the plying of vehicles on the polling day and where necessary, obtain permits for them which should be displayed prominently on those vehicles.
V. Polling Station
Excepting the voters, no one without a valid pass from the Election Commission shall enter the polling stations. The Election Commission shall ensure that sufficient passes are issued to all candidates such that they can ensure their interests are protected.
VI. Observers
Observers appointed by the Election Commission as well as by independent Non Government Organisations will be on duty outside the polling station. If the candidates or their agents have any specific complaint or problem regarding the conduct of elections they may bring these to the notice of the Observer.
VII. Party in Power
The party in power whether at the Federal level or in the State or States concerned, shall ensure that no cause is given for any complaint that it has used its official position for the purposes of its election campaign and in particular –
(i) (a) The Ministers shall not combine the discharge of their official duties with electioneering work and shall not also make use of official government machinery or government personnel or civil servants during the electioneering work.
(b) The use of all Government transport including official air-crafts, vehicles, machinery and personnel shall be distributed by the Election Commission equitably to all parties and candidates on the same terms and conditions on which they are used by the party in power;
(ii) Public places such as town halls etc., for holding election meetings, and use of helipads for air-flights in connection with elections shall not be monopolised by the party in power. Other parties and candidates shall be allowed the use of such places and facilities on the same terms and conditions on which they are used by the party in power;
(iii) Rest houses, bungalows or other accommodation, facility or other property of the government, state or municipal authority shall not be monopolised by the party in power or its candidates and such accommodation , facility or other property shall be allowed to be used by other parties and candidates in a fair manner but no party or candidate shall use or be allowed to use such accommodation (including premises appertaining thereto) as a campaign office or for holding any public meeting for the purposes of election propaganda;
(iv) Issue advertisement at the cost of the taxpayer in the newspapers and other media and the misuse of official mass media during the election period for partisan coverage of political news and publicity regarding achievements with a view to furthering the prospects of the party in power shall be scrupulously avoided. Newspapers and other media or mass media (as the case may be) shall not be monopolised by the party in power. Other parties and candidates shall be allowed the use of such places and facilities on the same terms and conditions on which they are used by the party in power;
(v) Use any Government paraphernalia or logos as part of the party campaign that may confuse the voters.
(vi) Ministers and other government, state and/or municipal authorities shall not sanction grants/payments out of discretionary funds from the time elections are announced by the Election Commission;
and
(vii) From the time elections are announced by the Election Commission, Ministers and other government, state and/or municipal authorities shall not –
(a) announce any financial grants in any form or promises thereof; or
(b) (except civil servants) lay foundation stones etc. of projects or schemes of any kind; or
(c) make any promise of construction of roads, provision of drinking water facilities etc.; or
(d) make any ad-hoc appointments in respect of positions in Government service or give public undertakings etc. which may have the effect of influencing the voters in favour of the party in power.
(viii) Ministers of Federal or State Government shall not enter any polling station or place of counting except in their capacity as a candidate or voter or authorised agent and should not bring along any unauthorised person/persons that may interrupt the polling process.
VIII. Resignation From Political Party After Election
(1) A candidate elected following the conclusion of an election and who thereafter resigns his political party membership shall resign his membership of the Legislative and/or State Assembly, as the case may be.
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