Ondo 2024: INEC deploys non-sensitive materials to local govt areas

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it has distributed non-sensitive materials to the 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state ahead of the 16 November governorship election in Ondo State.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner, Oluwatoyin Babalola, who dropped the hint on Saturday, also said INEC would use the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for accreditation and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IREV) for the transmission of the election results.

While addressing journalists on the preparations for the election, Mrs Babalola said 2,053,061 persons, including 1,034,006 male and 1,019,055 female, of which 726,944 are youths, constitute eligible voters for the election.

A total of 17 governorship candidates and their running mates had been fielded by political parties for the election.

According to her, a large percentage of the non-sensitive election materials required for the election have been received and deployed to the 18 Local Government Offices, where they are batched at Resident Area Center and polling unit levels.

She said the INEC was working closely with the relevant security agencies and stakeholders to ensure the safe storage and timely distribution of these materials on the eve of the election.

Mrs Babalola gave a breakdown of the just concluded Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, noting that there was a significant increase in registered voters across the state.

Breakdown of CVR exercise

She said after the conclusion of the CVR exercise, 58,708 new voters were registered, while 3,132 voters transferred their registration into the state.

She, however, said 123 voters transferred their registration out of the state.

She said: “The deployment of BVAS is a key innovation aimed at enhancing the credibility of the electoral process.

“May I state categorically that BVAS shall be deployed in all three thousand nine hundred and thirty-three (3,933) polling units in the state for voter accreditation, ensuring that only registered voters with valid PVCs are allowed to vote?

“This system will also transmit polling unit results directly to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), enabling greater transparency and real-time access to election results by the public.”

Mrs Babalola said INEC in the state had taken custody of sufficient numbers of BVAS for the election, saying the commission is confident in its reliability for the governorship election.

On ad-hoc staff

She further stated that the recruitment of ad-hoc staff for the election had been closed and the commission was at the stage of harvesting those who applied as ad-hoc election officials to invite the qualified ones for training.

She added: “Our focus during recruitment has been on competence, neutrality, and professionalism. The NYSC, who are going to form the major crop of poll officials to be used in the election have been subjected to 13 weeks of root training before the major Electoral Institute Training of Election Officials.

“In the same vein, while a series of capacity-building workshops have been conducted for our staff, lots of capacity enhancement training and workshops are still ongoing. This is aimed at aiding the staff of the Commission in the state to discharge their duties professionally.”

Promises credible poll

The INEC commissioner said it is fully committed to conducting a credible, transparent, and inclusive election in the state and called on the people to come out en masse on Election Day, exercise their franchise peacefully, and contribute to the democratic process.

She encouraged all political parties, candidates, and their supporters to respect the rules of engagement and promote a peaceful atmosphere before, during, and after the election.

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Mrs Babalola had recently denied allegations of compromises with the ruling All Progressives Congress after a youth group, Ondo State Youth Vanguard, petitioned the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu.

The group called for her transfer out of the state, fearing that her alleged posturing with the APC could deny the coming election of any credibility.

She had, however, denied the allegations, saying her interactions were with all political parties and were in accordance with the operations of the commission.