The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced November 8, next year, as the date for the off-cycle governorship election in Anambra State, in line with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
Announcing this yesterday in Abuja at a meeting with leaders of political parties, INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu said a formal notice for the election would be published on November 13, this year, ahead of preparations for the election.
The INEC chairman said the commission expected the parties to conduct their primaries between March 20 and April 10, next year, while the candidate nomination portal would open at 9 a.m on April 18, and close at 6 p.m on May 12, next year.
He said the final list of candidates would be published on June 9, while public campaigns by political parties would start on June 11 and end at midnight of Thursday, November 6, next year.
Yakubu announced that in the coming weeks, the commission would provide details of other electoral activities, including the registration of new voters, transfer of voters and the replacement of lost or damaged permanent voter’s cards (PVCs).
The INEC chairman said a detailed timetable and schedule of activities for the Anambra State governorship election would be uploaded to the commission’s website and social media platforms before the end of the meeting.
He added that hard copies would also be made available to the parties.
Yakubu directed political parties to use the INEC timetable to come up with their own timetable and schedule of activities to enable the commission work with them and plan better for the deployment of personnel and resources for the monitoring of parties’ primaries and campaign activities.
He said: “By doing so, you will avoid the last-minute rush with the attendant inability to meet deadlines. We will discuss this important matter at this meeting.”
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Commenting on past activities of the commission, Yakubu said: “You may recall that about two months ago, on Thursday, August 29, we had an extraordinary meeting on preparations for the Edo State governorship election.
“Today, we are holding the last in our regular quarterly consultative meetings with political parties for this year. We are glad that you continue to oblige us with your presence, despite the short notice.
“I have repeatedly said that there is no election season in Nigeria any longer. Recently, our regular meetings have come on the eve of major elections. With just 29 days (or four weeks) to the Ondo State governorship election, today’s meeting is no exception.
“Only two days ago, the commission presented the register of voters to political parties in our State Office in Akure. With this development, we have successfully accomplished 10 out of the 13 activities listed in the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the election.
“The remaining activities are the publication of the Notice of Poll, the Last Day of Campaign and Election Day. Although we have already published the Timetable, we are once again including copies in your folders for this meeting for guidance.
“We have included in your folders for this meeting a summary of the list of polling and collation agents for the Ondo State election. The commission is glad to note that all political parties fielding candidates for the election are in full compliance with the requirements for the upload.
“We are working in earnest to ensure that we delivered the identification tags for each of the 24,148 agents uploaded to our portal.
“The commission is also glad to report that the collection of the Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) from the last Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) commenced today in Ondo State. For the next five days (October 17 to 21, 2024), the cards will be available for collection at each of the 203 wards across the state.
“Thereafter, the cards will be available for collection in our 18 local government area offices in the state for one week (October 23 to 29, 2024). As earlier announced, the centres will be open to citizens from 9 a.m to 5 p.m daily.
“A document containing the names and location addresses of the 221 collection centres has already been uploaded to our website for public information. Hard copies are also included in your folders for this meeting.
“As usual, we appeal to political parties to support the commission in mobilising registered voters to collect their PVCs.
“To make the process easier, we have also uploaded the register containing the names and photographs of new voters (fresh registrants, transfers and applications for replacement of lost or damaged PVCs) to our website to facilitate a seamless collection of the cards.
“Even as we prepare for the Ondo State governorship election, we are always mindful of our responsibilities for elections and electoral activities.
“For instance, Section 28(1) of the Electoral Act 2022 requires the commission to issue the notice for elections not later than 360 days before the date of the election. This applies to the general as well as off-cycle governorship elections.”