The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Asmau Maikudi

  • Polls: INEC distributes sensitive materials in Zamfara

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Zamfara State Office has distributed sensitive election materials for the March 9 Governorship and State Assembly elections.

    Addressing newsmen while distributing the materials, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Asmau Maikudi, said the distribution was done early to ensure a hitch-free exercise.

    “You are all aware of the logistics problem encountered (in the state) during the presidential and national assembly elections.

    “This occurred as a result of a court order to include the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the national assembly elections,’’ he said.

    Read Also: ‘We’ll probe INEC over polls shift’

    Asmau assured that since the issue had been resolved, all the materials would reach polling units before 8:00 a.m. on Saturday and election would commence at the designated time.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that all the sensitive election materials were handed over to the Local Government Electoral Officers of all the 14 councils.

    A total of 1,671,333 ballot papers were distributed for State Assembly elections and 1,701,061 for the governorship election across the 14 council areas.

    The process was carried out in the presence of agents of all the political parties participating in the elections.

    Other materials distributed include results sheets for polling units, ward and local government collation, state assembly as well as governorship return sheets.

    NAN

  • INEC dismisses corruption allegations in Zamfara

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Zamfara has advised aggrieved politicians to seek redress at  the Elections Petitions Tribunal.

    The call was made by the commission’s Head of Voter Education and Publicity, Zamfara, Garba Galadima in a statement in Gusau on Saturday.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that a coalition of nine political parties on Thursday accused the commission of working in for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Feb. 23, presidential and national assembly elections in the state.

    The coalition also called for the immediate removal of the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state and all heads of security agencies before the March 9, Governorship and State Assembly elections.

    Spokesman of the group and governorship candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Alhaji Sani Shinkafi, had said at a news conference that the coalition  lost confidence in  INEC officials and the security agencies in the state.

    In its defence, Galadima said the delay experienced in the distribution of sensitive election materials was caused by the late instruction and court order that the APC, which was initially removed from the ballot paper, should be included.

    “We had to retrieve all the ballot papers initially loaded without APC Candidates and load the trucks with the ones carrying APC Candidates.

    The last truck left CBN on Friday to Tsafe LGA around 12.00 noon. That affected early commencement of the elections.

    “You should know that the Commission rescheduled the elections of about 77 Polling Units that could not conduct the polls on Feb. 23.”

    Apart from the reason for late arrival of materials, we noted the issue of polling without the Smart Card Readers (SCRs)  in some polling units where polls were cancelled in that regard and the issue of insecurity, especially in Mada Registration Area and violence in some polling units.

    Read Also: INEC to conduct supplementary elections March 9

    “The Commission decided to hold polls for the affected polling units on Feb. 24 to give the electorate their rights to vote.

    “The issue of malpractices enumerated were tabled by the complainants to the Collation and Returning Officers at the various Senatorial and Federal constituencies.

    “They took decisions bearing in mind the rules, regulations, guidelines as well as what the Electoral Act 2010 (As amended) stipulated.

    “You should know that the decision of the returning officer on the polls can only be upturned by the Election Tribunal, not INEC.

    “The elections were secured by the security agencies. We are all aware of the security challenges in Zamfara State.

    “We should be thankful to Allah for the conduct of the elections without the security threats envisaged.

    “The security agencies should be commended for securing the elections, especially INEC Staff, Ad hoc Staff and its materials.

    “How can there be elections without Result Sheets! Please be informed that the result sheets are used in the elections by the presiding officers, collation and returning officers in all the elections conducted.

    “They were distributed at the CBN Gusau, along with the ballot papers in the presence of the political party agents and security agencies.

    “After the end of each process, they were filled by the rightful Officers.”

    “The commission wishes to advise any candidate who participated in the national assembly elections that were conducted on February 23, 2019, to go to the Election Tribunal set up to dispose all the election related cases.

    “The commission does not have a political party or candidate. We know that any candidate or political party that fails in an election can manufacture all manner of tales to discredit the umpire.

    “The Resident Electoral Commissioner Zamfara, Dr. Asmau Maikudi, should be left alone to face her duties which she took oath to conduct transparently,”  he concluded.

    NAN

  • Electoral materials intercepted in Zamfara

    Two vehicles carrying election materials to Sokoto were separately intercepted in Gusaum, capital of Zamfara state capital on Tuesday afternoon.

    One of the vehicles was engage in an accident when it collided with two motorcycles along Sokoto road while the other was intercepted near Faru, a border town in Sokoto from Zamfara.

    However Zamfara Commissioner of Police Celestine Okoye, Resident Electoral Commissioner, Hajiys Asma’u Maikudi, Director of Department of State Security (DSS) and Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to Governor Yari at a joint media briefing on Tuesday’s evening disclosed the election materials were non- sensitive.

    Read Also: Zamfara: PDP faults AGF on letter to INEC

    According to Maikudi, the materials were meant to be dispatched to Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) zonal office when the police intercepted it in a stop- and-search operation.

    She said it was only a polling unit booklet, which was offloaded by the contractor when the first vehicle conveying the materials became faulty.

    She further revealed that the contractor had to divide the materials into two vehicles.

  • INEC to recruit PLWDs as adhoc staff in Zamfara

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it plans to recruit People living With Disabilities (PLWDs) as part of its adhoc staff for the forthcoming general election in Zamfara.

    INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Dr Asmau Maikudi, disclosed this at a meeting with the PLWDs in Gusau, on Thursday.

    “The general election will involve all Nigerians and we want to be sure that Nigerians participate in all our activities, most especially, voting by eligible voters who have collected their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs).

    “l however want you to know that only those who have the requirements to serve as ad hoc staff for the election will be considered for recruitment as ad hock staff,” Maikudi said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a team of European Union (EU) election observers also attended the meeting and commended INEC for its preparations for smooth conduct of the election.

  • INEC commends electorate over PVC collection in Zamfara

     

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Zamfara has commended the electorate over the collection of Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs).

    The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr Asma’u Maikudi gave the commendation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gusau on Friday .

    Asmau said the electorate had so far collected 1,589,593 PVCs out of the 1,678,593 PVCs received from the commission’s headquarters, adding that 89,124 PVCs were yet to be collected.

    She said the electorate deserved commendation in spite of the security challenges in the state.

    Read Also:Army neutralises Boko Haram insurgents in Yobe

     

    She said INEC was optimistic that more of the PVCs would have been collected if not for the activities of bandits, who displaced many from their homes.

    The REC said that voters who were yet to collect theirs could do so on or before Feb. 8 at the commission’s office in any local government nearest to them.

    She appealed to voters to personally collect their PVCs because collection of PVC by proxy was not allowed.