APA – Lagos (Nigeria)
The Chairman of Nigeria’s National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has said that the main report of the 2023 general elections will be released as soon as it is published.
Prof Yakubu told the quarterly Consultative meeting with the media on Thursday in Abuja that their last consultative meeting focused on the review of the last general elections as part of a wider consultation with stakeholders and that the review engagements had been concluded.
“The report is being finalised. So too is the main report on the 2023 General Election. As soon as they are published, the Commission will, as usual, share the reports with Nigerians,” he said.
According to him, the two documents will contribute to the ongoing conversation towards improving the future conduct of elections in Nigeria.
While expressing his delight at INEC’s close collaboration with the media, he recalled that “83 media organisations (print, broadcast and online) represented by 130 journalists, the INEC Press Corps is one of the most diverse and vibrant in Nigeria. This close partnership will be sustained and strengthened”.
Prof Yakubu also recalled that the last consultative meeting, INEC promised to share with you “our plans and preparations for the off-cycle Governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi States scheduled for Saturday 11th November 2023’’.
“I am glad to note that many of you here today are either directly involved in the coverage of the election or deploying teams of journalists to the three states.
“In fact, our updated statistics show that 94 media organisations, deploying 1,255 personnel, have been accredited for the elections. In the next few days, the accredited media organisations will be notified of the date for the collection of the identity cards for their officials,” he said.
He disclosed that about two weeks ago, the Commission conducted a mock accreditation involving actual voters in designated polling units in the three states and that by doing so, “we tested the efficacy of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for both biometric authentication of voters and the upload of result to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV)”.
“Some of you observed the mock accreditation exercise and viewed the results on the IReV portal.
“We have received no adverse report so far. By this, we are encouraged that the test was successful and we look forward to improved performance of the BVAS in voter accreditation and result upload in the forthcoming Governorship elections and beyond,” he said.
According to him, election is a multi-stakeholder activity and in discharging the responsibilities, INEC will continue to engage with all stakeholders and that one of such engagements is with the security agencies.
Speaking on the concerns raised by media organisations about the safety of journalists, technical staff and protection of their equipment deployed on election day, Prof Yakubu reassured the media that INEC would continue to engage with the security agencies both at the national level and in the three states to ensure the safety all stakeholders.
“At the same time, I wish to remind all media organisations to strictly adhere to the ethics of your profession. We welcome reports on the election. At the same time, you should form a bulwark against fake news.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the Commission does not believe in censorship. We have said repeatedly that the best antidote to fake news is greater openness and regular and consistent engagement with stakeholders. We will continue to work together in this regard,” he said.
He stated that the governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi are critical to the Commission and that the meeting would be fully briefed about the level of preparations, while the Commission would appreciate their comments and observations.
GIK/APA
Nigeria: INEC Chairman says main report of general elections to be released soon
