The Nation Newspaper

Tag: voter education

  • INEC fixes 23rd March for supplementary elections

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed 23rd March, 2019 for supplementary elections in states where elections were declared inconclusive.

    INEC announced the date in a press statement signed by the National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye.

    INEC noted that it acted in compliance within the ambit of the Electoral Act.

    Okoye also noted that in the case of Bauchi state, an investigation team has been set up to look into the matter in a bid to resolve whatever the issue is.

    The statement reads: “The Commission met today, l2th March 2019 and reviewed the conduct of the 29 Governorship and 991 State constituency elections held on 9‘h March 2019. In all, the Commission declared winners in the Governorship elections in 22 states.

    “However, the Returning Officers in Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto States declared the Governorship elections inconclusive.

    Consequently the Commission will conduct supplementary elections on Saturday 23rd March 2019 to conclude the process.

    Supplementary elections will also hold in polling units in all States where State Assembly elections were declared inconclusive and winners could not be declared. Details of the constituencies including number of polling units and registered voters will be published on our website tomorrow Wednesday 13th March 2019.

    “The elections were declared inconclusive for a combination of reasons, mainly the discontinuation of use of the Smart Card Readers midway into the elections or the failure to deploy them, over-voting and widespread disruption in many polling units.

    “In compliance with the Margin of Lead Principle derived from Sections 26 and 53 of the Electoral Act as amended and paragraph 41(e) and 43(b) of the INEC Regulations and Guidelines for the conduct of elections, the outcome of these elections could not be determined without conducting polls in the affected polling units.

    Hence, the Commission’s decision to conduct supplementary elections in line with this principle.

    “Furthermore, the Commission has considered a Report submitted by the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Bauchi State on the disruption of the collation at the Tafawa Balewa LGA collation centre, which led to the cancellation of results for the entire local government”.

    “The Commission found that there are issues that need further investigation and has set up a team led by a National Commissioner to resolve them”.

  • We’re overwhelmed by rush to collect PVCs- INEC

    The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) says it is overwhelmed by the current rush by eligible voters to collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) few days to the election.

    Mrs Ndidi Okafor, Head, Voter Education, Publicity, Gender and Civil Society at the INEC office in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria  in Abuja on Friday.

    Okafor, therefore, appealed to prospective voters who were yet to collect their PVCs in the FCT to be patient with the commission as it is doing everything possible to distribute them before the deadline.

    NAN reports that INEC had set Feb. 8, as deadline for eligible voters to collect their PVCs.

    “We have been distributing PVCs in the six Area Councils and in all the 62 wards of the FCT for the past 20 months.

    “We had earlier appealed to residents to come and collect theirs to discourage the 11th-hour rush syndrome, but they did not come, now they are putting pressure on everybody.

    “One of our staff was injured and most of them cannot even take break to eat due to the pressure from the people, so we are working on seeking assistance of the police in all the collection centres to maintain order.

    “The Feb. 8, deadline is sacrosanct and there won’t be an extension that is why we have extended the collection time from between 9 a.m. and 3p.m. to between 9.am. and 4p.m. daily,’’ she said.

    Okafor appealed to residents to be orderly on the queues so they can collect their cards on time.

    Read Also: INEC seeks media’s support on voter education

    She said the commission would distribute PVCs on Saturday, Jan. 19 and Sunday, Jan. 20 to enable workers collect theirs.

    She said that complaints of those whose names were omitted had been noted and had been sent to the headquarters for redress.

    She said their PVCs would be produced for collection before the deadline.

    Okafor said the commission has two PVC hotlines- 08153162663 and 08188241666 that people can call for complain or enquiry.

  • INEC seeks media’s support on voter education

    The Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC ), has called on the media to deeply engage in sensitization and concientisation exercise targeted at educating the voter.

    The National Commissioner, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Barrister Festus Okoye, explained that there was urgent need to build public confidence in the electoral process through holistic voter education and general enlightenment of the electorate.

    Okoye who was represented by the State Commissioner, Prof. Abdulganiy Raji said this in Ado Ekiti on Friday at the zonal sensitisation forum for the media organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Speaking at the forum, Okoye said the Commission’s was adequately prepared to conduct the coming elections with all activities attached to electioneering processes are almost fulfilled as entrusted by the constitution.

    He said: “since the release of the timetable for electoral events, the Commission has been diligently implementing the schedule of activities for the 2019 general elections.

    “We have so far implemented most of the activities, soon, we shall implement all and fulfil the mandate thrust upon us by the constitution”.

    Okoye who urged all registered voters who are yet to collect their Permanent Voters Cards to go and collect them, nothing that INEC has made special arrangement to make the pvcs available at the designated centres across wards.

    The National Commissioner stressed that smart cards reader was designed to authenticate, confirm and verify the fingerprint of the voters as an additional confirmatory procedure to avert electoral malpractices.

    In a case, the finger is not authenticated by the card reader but the PVC is confirmed as genuine and the voter’s personal details are consistent with the manual register, the electorate shall be allowed to vote, he added.

    Okoye who spoke on the existing challenge of vote buying said the electoral body has put in place measures aiming at curtailing the vote buying on the forthcoming general elections.

    Read Also: 2019: INEC warns against vote buying in Ekiti

    He said: “We have received credible information that some politicians are financially inducing electorate to collect the Voter Identification Numbers(VIN) on their PVCs since it will be difficult to buy votes at the polling units”.

    He, however, assured Nigerians that INEC will collaborate with security agencies to deal with the violators of electoral laws, including those who may be trying to compromise its staff to perpetuate the illegal acts.

    Meanwhile, the Resident Electoral Commissioner warned its staff against conniving with politicians to promote the culture of vote buying that has inhibited democratic consolidation in the country.

    Raji said: “The commission can’t deny the fact that there was vote buying in the system, but this was being done by politicians by way of manipulating the placement of the polling booths so that those voting can be monitored for financial inducement.

    “In most cases, some party leaders do coerce or manipulate our staff so that they can be favoured in such arrangement which INEC did not support.

    “INEC is not in support of any action that can affect the actual outcome of elections and hamper democratic consolidation”, he declared.

  • Voter education brings INEC to Crawford

    Youth Mobilisation and Participation, Awareness Creation, Political Education, Leadership Assessment among others were the buzzwords as Alhaji Lamidi Amosa, the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Ogun State took the podium to address Crawford University students during the Personality Platform programme organised by the Department of Political Science and International Relations of the university last Thursday.

    The theme of the programme was: “Mobilising Nigerian Youths for Political Participation and Voting in 2019 Election through Sustained Awareness”.

    It provided an opportunity for the students, especially of the Social Sciences, to appreciate the difference between theory they were taught in class and the real practice of politics.

    Alhaji Amosa underscored the need for students as Nigerians, to participate fully in the electoral process and not just “sit on the fence” as the “unenlightened but politically educated” wrest the crucial machinery of government from their hands.

    To actively participate in politics, he said that youths need to build sufficient before they can be entrusted with the lever of governance and control.

  • INEC commends school for including voter education in syllabus

    INEC commends school for including voter education in syllabus

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Friday commended the authorities of Mother of Perpertua Juniorate, Asaba, Delta, for including voter education in its syllabus.

    The Administrative Secretary of INEC in the state, Mrs Rose Oriaran-Anthony, gave the commendation when she played host to the management of the school in Asaba.

    Oriaran-Anthony said she was delighted when students showed interest in democracy, adding that such a development gave assurances of political advancement in the country.

    She said INEC was working hard to ensure conduct of credible election in the country and would need the support of all stakeholders.

    The administrative secretary noted that INEC as a body established by the Federal Government derived its powers from the constitution.

    She urged the students to utilise the opportunity offered by the new subject and be impacted with the right values.

    She conferred on the school, an honorary award of “Voter Education Ambassador,” noting that the school was the first in the state to come up with such a brilliant idea.

    Responding, Mrs Grace Dunkwu, a teacher in the school, thanked the commission for the honour bestowed on it.

    Dunkwu said that the purpose of the visit was to seek cooperation from the commission in teaching the subject.

    Highlight of the occasion was the presentation of teaching and learning materials to the school by the commission.

    Read Also: INEC begins staff training on voter education in Ebonyi – REC

  • Anambra poll to hold as scheduled, says INEC

    Anambra poll to hold as scheduled, says INEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday assured Nigerians that the Nov. 18 governorship election in Anambra would hold as scheduled.

    Chief Adedeji Soyebi, INEC National Commissioner in charge of Oyo, Osun and Ekiti, gave the assurance in Ibadan after declaring open a one –day Implementing Meeting on INEC Weekly Radio Programme.

    He said the threat by a group over the conduct of the election should be seen as a mere security challenge which the security apparatus was taking good care of.

    “We are ahead of time, continuous voter registrations in Anambra have been concluded and in three or four weeks’ time, all the registered voters must have collected their voter cards.

    “We are going to conduct the election by law, so the threat is just a security challenge and I am sure the security apparatus have strategised on how to take good care of it.

    “The election will be one of the best elections they have ever witnessed.

    “So, Anambra people should expect a peaceful, free, fair and credible poll,’’ the INEC commissioner stated

    Earlier, the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, had enjoined all INEC staff, especially participants, to step up effective voters’ education and publicity to ensure all stakeholders were fully informed about electoral processes and activities.

    Represented by Soyebi at the meeting, Yakubu said that the current national socio-economic challenges have a profound impact on voters’ attitude to electoral activities.

    “Voter disinterest and apathy is pervasive in our electoral terrain, so we are constantly required to encourage and motivate the people to participate.

    “The onus is on us to continuously remind them of the positive effect their participation can have on the polity,’’ the chairman said.

    He said that the commission had received approval for weekly enlightenment programmes on radio stations in all the states and FCT.

    According to him, the radio is recognised as a powerful channel to reach the citizenry.

    He said the meeting was therefore an avenue to discuss modalities for the implementation of the weekly radio programme.

    Yakubu implored the participants to continue to play effective part in sensitising the public to their civic duty of participation in the electoral process through regular education, exposure and positive influences.

    The News Agency of  Nigeria (NAN)  reports that heads of Voter Education Units of INEC across the 36 states of the federation and FCT attended the meeting.

  • INEC introduces voter education clubs in schools

    INEC introduces voter education clubs in schools

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has introduced voter education clubs in secondary schools in Enugu State, an official said.

    In a chat with the News Agency of Nigeria  in Enugu on Monday, the Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Dr. Lawrence Azubuike, said the essence was to inculcate in school children the concept of voting.

    Azubuike said the commission met with 142 principals of public schools on the issue and that the principals were enthusiastic about the concept.

    “The purpose, as I said, was to solicit their effort and to get their assistance in establishing voter education clubs because the focus now is to the children even when they are not of voting age.

    “ If they imbibe the culture and the ideals of democracy and the electoral process, it will stand them a very good stead when they become adults and when they attend the voting age; so the effort is to catch them young.

    “But as I said, it was well attended, well received and the process is still on. Some principals have started; they have started the process of establishing those clubs in their schools,” the REC told NAN.

    Azubuike said the commission would not fund the clubs but would assist and facilitate them.