Ahead of Saturday’s governorship election in Edo State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it is on top of logistics for the process. Rotimi Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary to the chairman of the commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, gave the assurance in an interview with TAIWO AMODU. Aside its preparation to give a seamless process, the commission also said it has taken note of flashpoints in the state and has secured the support of security agencies to contain violence.
Can we have the update on logistics ahead of the Edo State governorship elections?
We have firmed up our logistics architecture for the election. We have signed an agreement with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) and the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MAWUM) at both the national and state levels to ensure that the movement of men and materials to polling units on Election Day, as well as reverse logistics, are in order. We have distributed and batched all non-sensitive materials. In line with tradition, all the sensitive materials are in the safe vaults of the Central Bank of Nigeria in Benin City. Stakeholders will be invited to witness the issuance to our officials that will convey them to the designated places in a matter of days.
We conducted the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) in Edo State to enable qualified persons who had never registered before to do so, and we also gave those who wanted to transfer their polling units both within Edo State and from other states to Edo to do so. We printed the new Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) and made them available for collection at the 192 Wards and 18 Local Government Areas in the state. We have also accredited party agents, local and international observers, media organisations and civic society organisations for the election. We are good to go.
The commission has adjudged Edo State as where it got positive response from voters who registered in the Continuous Voters Register (CVR) and picked their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) – 68.3% of the new cards the highest since INEC introduced the CVR for off-cycle elections. What do you think is responsible for the high demand or response to pick PVCs in Edo State?
The high PVC pick-up rate by registered voters is clearly a demonstration of the confidence and faith that the good people of Edo have in INEC’s ability to conduct a free, fair, credible and inclusive governorship election. Don’t forget that the commission, under Professor Mahmood Yakubu conducted two governorship elections successfully in Edo State in 2016 and 2020. The voters saw on those two occasions that the only the good people of Edo State, through their votes, determined the winner of the election each time. So, they are confident that INEC will also not fail them this time round.
Signing of Peace Accord has become a practice ahead of the conduct of elections. It is often observed in the breach. What is INEC doing apart from moral suasion to ensure compliance?
The Peace Accord is the brainchild of the National Peace Committee, chaired by a former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar with Archbishop Matthew Hassan Kukah as the convener. The commission works with them to promote peaceful elections across the country. The committee’s involvement has been very helpful in persuading political parties and their candidates to embrace peace.
There have been threats of violence. Has INEC identified the flashpoints? Do you have any concrete assurance from security agencies to curb incidents of violence?
INEC uses contemporary tools to carry out risk assessments in areas where we organize elections. We have done so in Edo State and we have shared our findings with the security agencies under the auspices of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), which is the coordinating organ for ensuring peaceful elections countrywide. In the same manner, the Nigeria Police, which is the lead agency for election security, have carried out their own assessment and we are in sync. All security agencies have assured us that they are prepared for the election and that nobody will be allowed to disrupt it. We believe them.
PDP has alleged connivance of the INEC with the APC to rig the election. What is your reaction?
The commission is not in the business of rigging elections. Our duty, which we take seriously, is to conduct free, fair, credible and inclusive governorship election in Edo State. We assure the PDP and all the political parties participating in the election that we will provide a level playing field. Only the good people of Edo State will determine who becomes the next governor of the state on September 21, 2024.
By virtue of provisions of the Electoral Act, there must be a ceiling to what political parties can spend for elections. How do you intend to ensure that political parties do not give priority to voter’s inducement on Election Day? Secondly, we expect to see INEC walk its talk in looking at the financial books of political parties after elections? When do we start to see enforcement rather than mere appeal for compliance?
The commission is already watching the goings-on in the electoral space keenly. We have an understanding with the anti-graft agencies to ensure that there is no vote-buying in Edo election. Anyone found doing it, no matter how highly placed, will be arrested and prosecuted. We are already looking into the financial books of the political parties as required by law.
Certain political parties have decided to adopt the APC candidate for the elections: the National Rescue Movement (NRM), the Alliance Peoples Movement (APM), the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Action Democratic Party (ADP). Will those parties still be on the ballot for the election?
As far as we are concerned, 18 political parties will be on the ballot. The number was 17 before we received a court order to include the National Rescue Movement, which failed to nominate its candidates within the stipulated deadline as contained in the timetable and schedule of activities, on the ballot.
READ ALSO: Olubadan to unveil first digital classroom in Ibadan, Thursday
