Electoral Commission expresses readiness for rescheduled election

Electoral Commission expresses readiness for rescheduled election
Williams Osewezina, Lagos

Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has expressed readiness for the rescheduled National Assembly election, which will hold on April 9, 2011.

The chairman of the commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega said this in Abuja on Thursday, while briefing newsmen on the readiness of the commission for the election.

Addressing challenges

Speaking on the commission’s effort to address the logistics challenges witnessed on April 2, which led to the postponement of the elections, Prof. Jega said that results sheets for this Saturday’s election had already been received by States and Local Government Areas nationwide.

He said that challenges emerging from the fact that voting took place in some areas in spite of the postponement required more time than expected. He explained that in some areas, a good quantity of ballot papers had been used, stressing that it was not possible to reprint the ballot papers before the April 9 election.

Jega listed other challenges to include, omission of party names and logos in the ballot paper, which he said occurred due to human errors in compiling the names of qualified candidates, and sudden changes emanating from several judicial pronouncement on party nominations.

The INEC boss said that the challenges led to the need to reprint ballot papers before elections are conducted in the areas affected.

He said that it has become inevitable to postpone elections in 15 out of 109 senatorial districts and 48 out of 360 federal constituencies.

Senatorial districts affected

The senatorial districts affected are: Bayelsa Central, Benue north, Cross River Southern and Central, Ebonyi North, Ekiti Central, Ekiti North, Ekiti South, Gombe North, Kaduna North, Niger South, Plateau North, Plateau Central, Plateau South and Sokoto North

Election will also not hold in some federal constituencies in Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Benue, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers and Zamfara States.

Jega said that elections in the constituencies affected would hold on April 26 alongside the Governorship and the State Assembly elections.

Ensuring security

Jega advised all electorates and those who would stay behind after the elections to be orderly and peaceful during the elections.

He said that the commission was doing everything possible to ensure security at polling stations.

Prof. Jega appealed to all governors to comply with the code of conduct at the polling stations.

He thanked Nigerians for their understanding and support for the commission noting that the commission is capable to deliver free, fair and credible elections.

The INEC boss urged all Nigerians to come out on Saturday to exercise their right to vote.

Ekata