The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Inec

  • INEC: no fresh voter registration until after 2019 general elections

    THOSE pushing for fresh voter registration got a reply from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday. “Wait until after next year’s general elections,” the commission has said.

    INEC debunked reports that it has commenced fresh registration of voters. It noted that the news, which has gone viral in the social media was untrue.

    Besides, the commission said voter registration will only resume after the 2019 general elections.

    Read also: 2019: We’re monitoring campaign closely, says INEC

    In a tweet @inecnigeria, the electoral body shared by INEC Director on Information & Voter Education, Oluwole Osaze Uzzi, said Nigerians should disregard the false information being circulated on the social media.

    The tweet reads: “Information reaching the commission that some persons have been circulating messages online that INEC has giving another opportunity to register for your PVC, starting on the 2nd to 10th December 2018.

    “The report is untrue and we advise the public to ignore it.”

  • 2019: We’re monitoring campaign closely, says INEC

    THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is closely monitoring the ongoing campaign by various political parties and candidates ahead of the 2019 general elections, it was learnt yeterday.

    The campaign for the 2019 presidential election officially began on Sunday November 13, as provided for by the Electoral Act.

    INEC Chairman Mahmood Yakubu yesterday at a meeting  with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) from the 26 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), said the commission was happy with the trend of the campaign, which, he noted, has been on policies rather than personalities.

    He hoped that the trend would continue that way.

    Yakubu said: “The commission is committed to closely monitoring the campaigns pursuant to our statutory mandate and to ensure compliance with the extant laws and regulations. We are pleased that the focus in the last few days since the commencement of the campaigns has been on policies rather than personalities. We sincerely hope it remains this way.”

    The INEC boss, who also used the opportunity to react to the Kwara State bye-election at the weekend, promised that the commission would arrest and prosecute those involved in the attack on its workers and destruction of electoral materials.

    Yakubu added that the commission would work with security agencies to fish out the perpetrators.

    He said: “On a sad note, the commission lost four members of staff in Kogi State and one in Edo State to road accidents last week. Similarly, two of our staff survived road accidents in Katsina State during the bye-election last weekend and one election duty staff suffered a head injury following attack by hoodlums, who destroyed election materials at a polling unit in Kwara State.

    “We are deeply saddened by these incidents. While we pray for the repose of the souls of those who lost their lives and wish the injured a speedy recovery, we will work with the security agencies to ensure the arrest and prosecution of those involved in the attack on our staff and vandalisation of election materials.”

    On the window for political parties to substitute their candidates ahead of the 2019 elections, Yakubu said: “For governorship and state Assembly elections, the submission of nomination forms closed on November 2, 2018, while the last day for substitution and withdrawal of candidates is December 1, 2018.”

    He also reiterated that the Area Council elections in the FCT will hold on March 2, 2019, along with the governorship and state Assembly elections.

    He stated that the list of candidates for elections will be published yesterday in its Federal Capital Territory office and also at the six Area Councils.

    On the meeting with RECs, he said the meeting would provide opportunity for the electoral body to review the progress on collection of outstanding Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

  • 2019: We’re monitoring campaign closely – INEC

    …Expresses satisfaction so far

    ..Vow to arrest, prosecute perpetrator of Kwara violence

    The Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) has said that it is closely monitoring the ongoing campaign by various political parties and candidates ahead of the 2019 general elections.

    The Campaign for the 2019 Presidential election officially commenced on Sunday 13 November 2018 as provided for by the Electoral Act.

    Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Mahmood Yakubu, made the disclosure Wednesday during the meeting of INEC management team with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) from the 26 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    Read Also:INEC Chair to Nigerians: we ‘ll conduct credible poll

    Yakubu in his opening remark said the commission was happy with the trend of the campaign, which has been on policies rather than personalities; hoping that the trend will continue that way.

    “The Commission is committed to closely monitoring the campaigns pursuant to our statutory mandate and to ensure compliance with the extant laws and regulations. We are pleased that the focus in the last few days since the commencement of the campaigns has been on policies rather than personalities. We sincerely hope it remains this way,” he said.

    The INEC boss who also used the opportunity to react to the Kwara state bye-election at the weekend, said vowed that the commission will arrest and prosecute those involved in the attack on its staff and destruction of electoral materials in the Kwara state at the weekend.

    Yakubu also said the commission will work with the security agencies to fish out the perpetrators.

    He said: “On a sad note, the Commission lost four (4) members of staff in Kogi State and one (1) in Edo State to road accidents last week. Similarly, two (2) of our staff survived road accidents in Katsina State during the bye-election last weekend and one (1) election duty staff suffered a head injury following attack by hoodlums who destroyed election materials at a polling unit in Kwara State.

    “We are deeply saddened by these incidents. While we pray for the repose of the souls of those who lost their lives and wish the injured a speedy recovery, we will work with the security agencies to ensure the arrest and prosecution of those involved in the attack on our staff and vandalisation of election materials. ”

    Speaking on the window for political parties to substitute their candidates ahead of the 2019 elections, Yakubu said, “For Governorship and State Assembly elections, the submission of nomination forms closed on 2nd November 2018 while the last day for substitution and withdrawal of candidates is 1th December 2018.”

    He also reiterated that the Area Council elections in FCT will hold on March 2, 2019, along with the governorship and state Assembly elections.

    He also disclosed that the list of candidates for elections will be published in its Federal Capital Territory office and also at the six Area Councils on Wednesday, 21st November, 2018.

    Speaking on the meeting with RECs he said the meeting will provide opportunity for the electoral body to review the progress on collection of outstanding Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

    He said, “At today’s meeting, we will also discuss with the RECs the progress made on the collection of outstanding Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) by citizens as well as new modalities for a more efficient administration of the collection process. Similarly, the meeting will consider the recruitment and training of election duty staff, discuss the on-going review of the framework for voting by Internally Displaced Persons (lDPs), explore additional assistive measures in support of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in the electoral process, examine additional ways to safeguard the sanctity of the ballot against the menace of vote-buying at polling units, appraise issues relating to electoral logistics and generally assess facilities and preparations for the General Election. “

  • 400,000 PVCs unclaimed in Rivers – Senate Committee

    The Senate Committee on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has expressed concern over more than 400,000 Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) unclaimed in Rivers INEC office.

    Sen. Suleiman Nazif, Chairman, Senate Committee on INEC, made this known after an oversight function of the committee in Port Harcourt on Monday.

    Nazif is the PDP Senator representing Bauchi North Federal Constituency.

    He said that though INEC had shown readiness in terms of manpower and facility upgrade, low PVC collection rate in Rivers was a source of great concern in the forthcoming general elections.

    “We are here in Rivers to see first-hand how prepared INEC is ahead of the 2019 general elections.

    “We went round their offices and we saw the state of the card readers at the IT Department. We had a chart with the staff and they assured us that they were all geared up and ready for the 2019 elections.

    “We also requested to see the published register and we sought to know the response level toward PVC collection and we found out that over 400,000 PVCs had not yet been collected,’’ Nazif said.

    The lawmaker, however, said that the committee would cooperate with INEC toward ensuring that every person living and in the best state of health claimed his or her PVC before the election.

    Nazif said that though INEC was working very hard, it should do more in the area of distribution of PVCs across localities.

    Read Also: 238,309 PVCs still unclaimed in Nasarawa State – INEC

    He urged INEC to start pasting names of owners of unclaimed PVCs in affected localities to improve on collection response.

    Attributing high number of unclaimed PVCs in the state to relocation or death of some PVC owners, the lawmaker urged every eligible Nigerian voter to secure a Permanent Voter’s Card.

    “What surprised us most is that the recent PVCs produced a couple of months ago had been collected while the old ones remained unclaimed.

    “I think that owners of the unclaimed PVCs may have been posted out from the state. Some of them may be students, who got registered in their final year and may have graduated and left the area, while some owners may have passed on.

    “Whatever be the situation, 400,000 unclaimed PVCs in only one state is not a good sign of a progressive attitude toward election.

    “It is incumbent on all eligible Nigerian voters to secure their PVCs. It is a thing of pride to have a card that enables us exercise our franchise, ‘’ Nazif said.

    Concerning the status of the card readers, the lawmaker explained that he was satisfied with the storage and safety of the device in Rivers.

  • Buhari, Oshiomhole meet in Aso Rock over 2019 elections

    President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole on Friday met behind closed doors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    Speaking with State House correspondents after the meeting, Oshiomhole said that the APC was fully ready to flag off the campaigns soon.

    According to him, the party’s campaign for the 2019 presidential election will focus on character and integrity of the key candidates.

    He said, “We are fully ready, we have done with our primaries and filled our nominations. As you know, INEC still has a window between now and First of January to deal with issues of substitution. As of campaigns, we are ready.

    “We are going to announce the date and programme for our campaigns, and speak to the issues. My idea of kick off will be the day we will do our first presidential rally where Mr. President as our candidate and other candidates, party leaders will assemble in a venue that will be agreeable to all of us.

    Read also: Ohanaeze endorsement of Atiku, no substance – Buhari 

    “There will be two sets of messages. One, on what we have done in the past, without failing to remind people of where we were before, what we are going to do in the next three years, and a couple of things we believe we will be doing differently.

    “Why we are a better choice? President Buhari if compared to the rest of the aspirants, there is no basis to compare day and night. The real issue in this election is not going to be religion. It is not going to be about political party, central to the issue and given our past experience as a country, we know that what makes a difference is the character, the issue of integrity of the candidates.

    “All those issues of character, especially looking at the past, the key candidates in the election are not strangers to governance, they are not even strangers to this villa, so we will be able to ask a couple of questions about what do they know now that they didn’t know then when they had power.

    “This edition is going to be focusing on character, integrity of those who want to govern us. In addition to what and how they will do things differently.” he added

    Oshiomhole also dismissed  the allegations of corruption leveled against him by Senator Shehu Sani

    Sani had accused him of collecting bribes of up to $2million to manipulate the senatorial primaries of Kaduna Central zone.

    Speaking on the crisis facing the Imo APC governorship candidate, Senator Hope Uzodimma, he said there was no crisis.

    He said, “What is the crisis? That somebody won and somebody lost and the person who lost said no, no, no, I am the son-in-law to the governor I can’t lose and therefore we have crisis. Go to Imo and find out, go to the markets, mechanic workshops or even the civil servants in Imo and ask how they think on the issue of son-in-law. Look at the crowd that received Senator Hope Uzodimma, it was a mixture of both a rejection of dynasty vis a vis the natural support base that Hope has.

    “Haven’t you seen on social media how the excited Imolites erected statue on Oshiomhole although the body is big” he said

  • 2019: INEC uncovers 1,224 death persons in Adamawa register

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has detected 1,224 dead persons’ names in its Adamawa voters’ register for the 2019 general elections.

    Mr Kassim Gaidam, the state Resident Electoral Commissioner, disclosed this during the opening of a two-day workshop for North East Zonal lmplementers on election monitoring and support, holding in Yola on Thursday.

    Gaidam said that the statistic was uncovered during the recent display of voters’ register for claims and objections.
    The commissioner said that the exercise was successfully conducted across the state.

    He explained that during the exercise, the commission recorded 2,113 claims and out of the 1,588 objections, 1,224 were reported death.
    The commissioner noted that during the exercise, 38,658 Permanent Voter Cards were collected across the state.

    Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the INEC Chairman, said that the election monitoring and support centre was one of the significant tools used by the commission in planning, monitoring and implementation of support provision to field officers for credible conduct of the elections.

    Yakubu, who was represented by his Special Assistant, Prof. Muhammed Kuna, said that the commission would use all resources at its disposal to ensure fair and free conduct of the 2019 general elections.

    Read Also: 2019 Delta Council boss sues for peaceful electioneering

    He explained that the workshop was to strengthen the commission’s capacities to monitor the mechanisms and activities put in place for smooth conduct of the 2019 general elections, among objectives.

    Also speaking, Mr Samson Fadare, the representative of European Centre for Electoral Support, said the EU was proud to support INEC’s laudable initiative that sought to ensure free, fair and smooth conduct of elections.

    “It will be recalled that European Centre for Electoral Support supported the conduct of the election monitoring support implementer workshops for the off-cycle governorship elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun in 2017 and 2018, among others,” Fadare said.

    He noted that the workshop was the second of its kind designed for zonal implementers and would be organised across the six geopolitical zones to educate and familiarise the functionaries of the commission across the nation.

    It was reported that the workshop was organised by INEC and supported by European Union.

    Five out of the six INEC resident electoral commissioners from North East with their top management staff were participants, excluding Bauchi State.

  • 2019 : Delta Council boss sues for peaceful electioneering

    Mr Michael Tidi, Chairman, Warri South Local Government Area of Delta has urged the electorate to maintain peace and decorum in the forthcoming electioneering for the 2019 general elections.

    Speaking with newsmen in Warri on Thursday, Tidi said there was no need for violence.

    He called for cooperation and friendship during electioneering.

    “From November 18, I believe the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will lift ban on campaigns and so many persons will be involved in the electioneering process.

    “Therefore, we should go about politicking with decorum; after all we are brothers and sisters at the end of the day,’’ Tidi said.

    The council boss also advised youths in his domain to eschew violence and other criminal acts that could lead to breakdown of law and order throughout the yuletide and beyond.

    He said that the thought of get-rich quick syndrome should be out of their minds and admonished them on legitimate means of livelihood.

    Read Also: Delta APC suit: Court adjourn yet again until December 5th

    Tidi, who assumed duty in January, said that he would continue to provide the dividends of democracy to the people and urged them to remit their levies promptly.

    “In the yuletide period and beyond, we should eschew violence and any act that will lead to break down of law and order in Warri South.

    “The get-rich quick syndrome should be deleted from our minds so that at the end of the day, everybody will be happy, ‘’ he said.

    Tidi said his administration had introduced the use of scratch cards to facilitate the collection of levies and also ensure transparency and accountability in the processes.

    “We are blocking loopholes. Before now some money ended up in the hands of individuals and tax agents.

    “With the scratch cards, people now pay their levies to our designated banks, bring the card to the council for proper capturing.

    “This method has helped us in policy formulation, implementation and project execution because priority is given to areas where revenue is paid in the course of our responsibility as a government,’’ he said.

    NAN

  • INEC working with ruling party to rig polls, says Secondus

    PEOPLE’S Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman Prince Uche Secondus has accused Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of working in conjunction with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to rig the 2091 elections.

    He cautioned INEC to ensure credible elections in 2019.

    Secondus warned that any attempts to manipulation the election would be a recipe for crisis and that INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu would be held accountable.

    The PDP chairman, who spoke in Abuja yesterday while receiving Election team of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), added that history would be unkind to the INEC Chairman, if he failed to conduct free and fair elections next year.

    According him, INEC used the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states as dress rehearsal to rig the 2019 polls.

    Secondus said: “They have finished their rigging arrangements with preloaded cards and special election result sheets all doctored to favour the ruling APC.

    “The INEC Chairman has no strong will to follow our electoral laws and constitution as well as the laid down international standards in his processes towards 2019 and we want to let the world know this before it happens.

    “They have finished plots to isolate states like Kano, Benue, Rivers, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Imo, Kwara and Lagos for disruption during the general election so they can plan well to mobilise for rigging.”

    The party chair further alleged that the commission’s rigging agenda was being propelled by the security agencies.

    The five-man ECOWAS team, led by Mohammad Conteh stressed the need for Nigeria to have credible elections in 2019, saying it would go a long way to deepen democracy in the sub region.

  • 2019: Five PDP defectors get return tickets, two lose out

    With the release of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, list of candidates for the various elective positions in 2019, it is confirmed that two out of the seven Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, lawmakers at the Lagos State House of Assembly who defected to the All Progressives Congress, APC, could not secure return ticket to the Assembly for 2019.

    Also three out of the 19 first term lawmakers in the 8th Assembly lost their bid to come back for a second term in 2019 having lost out in the party primaries.
    The two PDP defectors who could not make it are: the former Minority Leader, Mr. Akeem Bello representing Amuwo Odofin 2 constituency and Mr. Adedayo Famakinwa representing Ajeromi/Ifelodun 1 constituency.

    The three first termers who also lost out at the primaries are: Mr. Sola Giwa representing Lagos Mainland 2 constituency, Bello and Famakinwa.

    Read Also: PDP blasts senator for poor project execution

    Although reliable sources at the Assembly said that all the defectors were promised automatic return ticket the party’s decision to subject all the aspirants to direct primaries seem to have worked against that promise for Bello and Famakinwa who could not pull their weight at the primaries.
    Although Bello’s name was in the first list released by INEC, his name is however not in the latest list released by the electoral body Friday last week.
    It would be recalled that the 8th Lagos Assembly started with eight opposition lawmakers from PDP and seven of them later defected to the ruling APC and only five out the seven were able to secure return ticket to the Assembly that is if they win the election in 2019.

  • Bode George tasks INEC on electoral neutrality

    Chief Olabode George, former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has tasked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be neutral in the conduct of the 2019 elections.

    George, who spoke in an interview with the our reporters  on Wednesday in Port Harcourt, urged the election umpire to  conduct free and fair elections.

    He challenged the body to put on record an election void of hindrance that would not endanger the will of the majority.

    “My appeal is that there should be nothing to hinder the election process, the election must be fair, just and equitable,” the PDP chieftain said.

    He alleged that there were electoral irregularities in the Ekiti and Osun state elections, urging the election umpire to ensure a more transparent process in 2019.

    “The display in Ekiti and Osun state elections, simply put, was an absolute charade.

    “It was disheartening for me, because this is 21st century, we should always think about the perception of the international community concerning our democracy.

    “If you read their reports on Ekiti and Osun state elections, it speaks volume about the irregularities perpetrated in those elections.

    “My sincere appeal to INEC, please don’t manipulate the process, let the will of the majority be respected and sustained,” he said.

    The party chieftain expressed optimism on his party’s chances of winning the 2019 general elections, urging the ruling party, APC, to exhibit same level of statesmanship displayed in 2015 by former President Goodluck Jonathan if it eventually loses to the PDP.

    “If we lose this election, we shall go back and prepare ahead of 2023, but if we win, please don’t manipulate the process.

    “The statesmanship exhibited by former president Jonathan was indeed a hallmark of our renewed strength, because through that, we went back to our drawing board.

    “We did a postmortem and we saw where we went wrong and we are set to deliver good government to our people based on our renewed strength and knowledge,” he said.

    NAN