…advises parties to comply with Electoral Act
The Independent National Electoral Commission on Tuesday said 2.7 million double registrations were weeded out of the last Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise conducted by the commission.
Yakubu said new Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will be made available by November.
INEC Chairman Prof Mahmoud Yakubu said this at a National Endowment for Democracy event in Washington DC in the United States.
According to him, about 50% of the new PVCs are ready but yet to be distributed to collection centres.
He also raised concerns about the rising levels of insecurity across the country, saying the Commission has its “fingers crossed”.
“It is a perennial issue because, at the end of the day, it is not new but the dimension of the insecurity is new in the sense that in the past, it was localised or confined to a particular part of the country – the North-East but now, it is more widespread,” he said.
“We are keeping our eyes, particularly, on the North-West and the South-Eastern part of the country. Elections are conducted by human beings. We worry about the security of our officials, materials, and even the voters themselves. Without them, elections cannot be conducted. ”
The INEC chief, however, said they “have spoken to the security agencies and they have assured us that the situation will improve before the elections. So, fingers crossed.”
Meanwhile, INEC has reiterated call to political parties in the country to be guided by the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 as amended.
Alhaji Abacha Bukar, the INEC State Administrative Secretary made the call at the stakeholders’ meeting organised by the commission on Tuesday in Damaturu, Yobe.
Bukar observed that political parties, candidates and supporters would soon commence campaigns through various manners and strategies as liberated by the law.
He, however, said the commission was determined to play its role as a regulator of the entire process.
“The commission rigorously monitors compliance to ensure that political parties shun abusive, intemperate and slanderous language and insinuations that can lead to a breach of peace during the electioneering campaigns.
“Similarly the commission will also monitor the compliance of campaign spending and finances as provided under the electoral act.
“Therefore, we strongly advise the political parties to study and understand the legal framework of the Electoral Act to avoid any infraction of the law.
Bukar emphasised that the commission was adequately prepared to ensure a hitch-free conduct of the elections.
He commended all the stakeholders who attended the meeting in spite of their tight schedules.
“This is an indication of your dedication towards actualizing a free fair credible and all-inclusive general election.”, he said.
Speaking at the occasion, the State Police Commissioner, Haruna Garba, also said all political parties and other stakeholders must abide by the rules and regulations of the game.
He urged the stakeholders to go through the Electoral Act and get themselves familiar with its provisions for strict compliance.
