INEC ready for Ondo governorship election as CBN delivers sensitive materials

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared that it is ready for this Saturday’s Ondo governorship election.

This is just as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Monday delivered sensitive materials to its Akure branch for onward distribution to 18 Local Government Areas of Ondo State.

Also, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Eyitayo Jegede, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag bearer and candidates of other political parties would Tuesday sign peace accord under the supervision of the National Peace Committee.

INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu who disclosed this at the Ondo governorship election stakeholders in Akure said the Commission has delivered non-sensitive materials to all the 18 Local Government Areas of Ondo State.

Yakubu said INEC moved Smart Card Readers from Oyo State and configured them for the election, in replacement of the Card Readers that were burnt in a recent fire incident that engulfed INEC Office in Ondo.

He stated that the Commission has made arrangements for the movement of personnel and materials to electoral locations in all 3,009 polling units and 203 electoral wards across the State, adding that INEC has recruited, trained and screened all categories of ad hoc staff for the election.

Reeling out other preparations for the Ondo governorship election, the INEC Chairman said: “We have continued to work with security agencies under the auspices of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to ensure a hitch-free and secure election on 10th October. I wish to specifically thank all the agencies in ICCES, especially the lead agency, the Nigeria Police, for their continued support and professionalism as we prepare for the election.

“Our commitment is to ensure that the choice of who becomes the next Governor of Ondo State is entirely in the hands of the voters. I wish to assure all eligible voters that every vote will count and only the choice made by the people of Ondo State will determine the outcome of the election.

“I want to assure political parties and candidates that we will remain focused on our processes and procedures. Let me reiterate to all stakeholders that the Commission will not take any action to the advantage or disadvantage of any political party or candidate”.

According to Yakubu, the Commission has reviewed the last Governorship election in Edo State and is determined to continue improve on its performance as it identified 16 areas of improvement, including logistics, prompt response to Smart Card Reader glitches on Election Day, the menace of vote buying during elections and compliance with COVID-19 protocols.

“In response, we have engaged with land and maritime transport owners for forward and reverse logistics to and from land and riverine locations. We have engaged additional 104 Registration Area Technical Support (RATECHS) staff to respond rapidly to issues with Card Readers on Election Day. We had useful discussions with the security agencies and anti-corruption agencies on how to deal with vote buying during elections.

“Working with health authorities, we will continue to enforce safety measures at polling units, including the compulsory wearing of face masks and the provision of non-pharmaceutical interventions such as hand sanitisers and infra-red thermometers at polling locations and collation centres. On this note, I would like to appeal to all election officials, transport providers, polling agents, election observers and the media to ensure compliance with the advisory by health authorities. Voting in safety is a critical component of elections in the era of COVID-19 pandemic.

“All eligible voters will have equal opportunity to exercise their right to vote. In order to ensure greater awareness and effective participation of all citizens in the electoral process, the Commission is deploying magnifying glasses and braille ballot guides to assist Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) to vote unaided. For this reason, the Commission has translated and published the policy on conducting elections in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the Voters’ Code of Conduct into braille. We have also produced posters to guide hearing-impaired voters” he added.