Insecurity: INEC Cautions Political Parties, Candidates Against Unguarded Utterances, Actions

The Chairman Independent National Electoral Commission  INEC,  Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has appealed to all political parties and candidates not to compound the feeling of insecurity in Anambra State through unguarded utterances and actions.

Professor Yakubu, who was speaking at an emergency consultative meeting with political parties said, a total of one hundred and thirty eight thousand,  eight hundred and two citizens have completed the registration, including applications for transfer and requests for replacement of lost, damaged or defaced PVCs as required by law. 

He however noted, that in the process of cleaning up the registration data, they discovered that sixty two thousand,  six hundred and ninety eight persons who previously registered re-registered afresh thereby rendering them invalid and they have archived the registrations but their old PVCs remain valid and they can use them to vote at the Polling Units where they registered or voted in previous elections. 

Professor Yakubu, said the about twenty six thousand ad hoc staff required for the election will all be recruited in time for their training scheduled to commence in two weeks. 

The INEC boss said, though, security remains a challenge to their preparations, the emergency meeting with Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security, ICCES,  last Tuesday, assured them that security agencies are ready to protect voters, election staff, election observers, the media, transport providers and candidates during the election. 

The Chairman, promised that they will continue to work with security agencies to ensure that the election is successful and violence-free and lamented that the security situation has made their job very difficult and may lead to voter apathy.

In his address, the Chairman of the lnter Party Political  Parties, Mr Leonard Ezenwa said he had directed State political leaders to profile their members to keep their house in order owing to the reported attacks on INEC offices across the South East region.

He called on lNEC not to deter in its efforts to conducting a credible election in Anambra or using all the newly introduced technology, stressing that Anambra is a major corridor to South East and that if the governorship election is gotten right, elections in the South East would have been gotten aright.