Electoral commission assures eligible electorate of registration before poll

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has assured that all eligible prospective voters are registered ahead of the general election in Nigeria, inspite challenges being face by the commission.

Penpushing reports that Chairman of the commission,Mahmood Yakubu gave the assurance at a meeting with the Resident Electoral Commissioners across the state, a meeting held at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

The electoral boss disclosed that the commission has received reports of surge in the number of prospective registrants that throng the commission’s offices across the country, hence, need to address the situation perfectly

‘The Commission has received reports of a surge in the number of prospective registrants that daily throng our State and Local Government Area offices as well as designated centres in many States across the country. I wish to reassure Nigerians that the Commission remains committed to ensuring that all citizens who wish to register are given the opportunity to do so’, he said.

Penpushing further reports that, Yakubu said the meeting was held to  discuss preparations for the 2023 general election, and  review a number of inter-related activities, particularly the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise and the submission of the list of candidates by political parties.

The chairman noted that, despite  challenges, the Continuous Voter Registration(CVR) has continued nationwide, adding that as the deadline for the suspension of the current exercise approaches, the commission has received reports of a surge in the number of prospective registrants.

Penpushing also reports that, he disclosed that,aAlready, some of the Resident Electoral Commissioners have requested for more voter registration machines to ease the congestion,assuring that the commission will deploy additional machines to areas of need immediately.

‘Thereafter, the Commission will meet to review the progress of the exercise and take further decisions. We will always respond positively to the needs of Nigerians and therefore appeal to all citizens to be patient with the Commission as we strive to serve them better. We appreciate the desire of Nigerians to register as voters. Let me reassure all eligible registrants that no one will be left out’.

Penpushing reports that, on the party primaries which by law ends on Thursday,June 9, 2022, Yakubu declared that  all political Parties are required to submit their list of candidates for national elections (Presidential/Vice Presidential, Senatorial and House of Representatives) latest by Friday 17th June 2022.

‘ For State elections (Governorship/Deputy Governorship and State Houses of Assembly), the list of candidates shall be uploaded from 1st to 15th July 2022 as already provided in the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2023 General Election already released by the Commission’, he stated.

‘All Political Parties are required to upload the details of their candidates for each constituency to the INEC Candidate Nomination Portal (ICNP). To achieve this objective, four officials recommended by each of the 18 political parties were trained on the procedure for uploading the nomination forms to the dedicated web portal. Confidential Access Codes to the portal have already been given to each Political Party to facilitate the uploading of its nominations’.

‘For emphasis, the Commission wishes to remind Political Parties that only the names of candidates that emerged from democratic primaries as provided by Sec. 84 of the Electoral Act 2022 shall be submitted to the Commission’.

‘Similarly, the list of all Presidential and Governorship candidates must be accompanied by the names of their running mates (i.e. Vice Presidential and Deputy Governorship candidates) without which the nomination is invalid’.

‘All nominations must be uploaded to the portal on/or before the deadlines. The portal will automatically shut down at 6.00pm (1800hrs) on Friday 17th June 2022 for national elections and 6.00pm (1800hrs) on Friday 15th July 2022 for State elections. With this innovation, the Commission has eliminated the physical interface between party officials and INEC staff for the purpose of submitting the list of candidates for the 2023 General Election’, he said.

‘A Nomination Centre has been set up here at the Commission’s Headquarters to receive and process all nominations by political parties, including dedicated telephone lines to serve as Help Desk for any Party that may need assistance. In our avowed commitment to openness and transparency of the process, the media will be invited to the Nomination Center so that Nigerians will see our level of preparedness for the exercise’, Yakubu emphasised.

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