Again, the Nigerian electoral commission assures the comity of nations of its readiness to deliver free, fair and credible elections as Nigerians go to the polls, February 16 and March 2

AHEAD of Nigeria’s crucial presidential and general elections on Saturday February 16 and March 2, Mahmood Yakubu, the chair of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Nigeria, has reassured the international community of the commission’s readiness to deliver credible elections in the country.

“Your presence as observers is an important element of the electoral process and adds value to what we do (as election management bodies),” Yakubu, who is also president of the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions, ECONEC, governing board, told international and national observers during a briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, February 12, 2019.

He also assured that the poll observers would be provided adequate security and unimpeded access to the electoral process.

Mohammed Adamu, the acting inspector general of Police, IGP, similarly gave the same assurance, especially in relation to electoral security.

“Nigerian police is ready to secure the electoral officials, election materials and the observers,” Adamu said, adding that each of the 119,973 polling units nationwide would be manned by three unarmed security personnel. He further explained that some 24,000 armed mobile police, 4,000 counter-terrorism and 8,000 Special Protection forces would also be deployed to respond to any emergency on polling day.

Antonia Simbine, the INEC commissioner and chairperson of the Election and Party Monitoring Committee, gave a comprehensive briefing on the Commission’s budget and preparations to cater to the more than 84 million registered voters and 91 political parties in the country.

With an expenditure ratio of US$6.5 per voter, she assured that INEC had put the necessary machinery in motion for a seamless electoral process in line with the provisions of the constitution and the electoral law.

Some 1,558 candidates are vying for various positions including the presidency, 29 State governorship positions, 109 senatorial seats, 991 National and State Houses of Assembly seats, six Area Council Chairperson and 62 Councillors in the Federal Capital Abuja.

The briefing also featured the launch of the Election Translation Application developed by the European Centre for Electoral Support, ECES, which is implementing the EU democracy support to Nigeria in collaboration with ECONEC and INEC.

Jakaya Kikwete, a Tanzania’s former president, who is leading the Commonwealth Election

Observation Mission to Nigeria, spoke on behalf of the International Observation groups, including ECOWAS, ECONEC and the EU, while Clement Nwankwo, the executive director, Policy and Legal Advocacy, PLAC, spoke on behalf of Civil Society organisations and national observation groups.

The ECONEC has deployed a six-member Peer Support and Learning Mission headed by Mohammed N’fah-Alie Conteh, the chair of Sierra Leone’s Electoral Commission to observe the Nigerian polls in line with the Network’s mandate to promote credible elections in the region through support to members holding elections consistent with international best practices.

Representatives of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, IEFS, and ECES read goodwill messages encouraging INEC and expressing their optimism for peaceful elections in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation which returned to democracy in 1999 after a long period of military incursion in politics. The last presidential election in 2015 saw the opposition All People’s Congress, APC, wresting power from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, which is now the main opposition party.

Incumbent President Mohammadu Buhari of the APC and the PDP’s Atiku Abubakar are the front-runners for the presidential poll on February 16.  Elections to fill the vacant National Assembly seats also come up on the same day, while those for the governors and state Houses of Assembly come up on March 2.

– Feb. 13, 2019 @ 15:12 GMT |