We’re not a political party – INEC-Crossfire

INEC Chairman, Prof.
Mahmood Yakubu, at a quarterly meeting with Chairmen and Secretaries of 68 registered political parties in the country, used the opportunity to respond to the ludicrous claim that the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to be used in the conduct of any election could be cloned and Smart Card Readers (SCR) pre-loaded.
EMEKA NZE brings excerpt.
“The card readers are only configured to specific polling units 72 hours or less before an election, set to operate only on election day from 8 am and is manually shut down for accreditation after the last person on the queue has voted or automatically by 8 pm.
“In Ekiti State, where we are deploying the enhanced Smart Card Readers (SCRs), this process has not even commenced.
It is impossible to pre-load the card readers, let alone do so with cloned PVCs,” Prof.
Yakubu further explained.
He regretted that there is still fixation in certain quarters that INEC officials are involved in perverting the processes and procedures for partisan considerations.
“INEC is not a political party and have no candidate in any election.
Speaking on the July 14 Ekiti State governorship election, Prof.
Yakubu said the election would be holding in 2,195 polling units spread across 177 wards in 16 Local Government Areas, adding that 35 political parties have been cleared to contest in the election.
He said INEC has so far, successfully implemented 12 out of the 14 activities leading to the election.
Prof.
Yakubu noted that the commission was aware that as the 2019 general elections approach, there will be a lot of interest in INEC “activities for virtuous and malicious reasons,” recalling the outrage over the image of a blank PVC advertised by an offshore company for purchase in the open market.
“We have extracted a commitment fromAlibaba.com to stop this unwholesome practice forthwith and will continue to work with the security agencies to track down those responsible for the advert as well as any prospective buyers of which there are none so far.
“We suspect that many dubious enterprises will keep trying openly and in the dark web.
We have anticipated these challenges and we are far ahead of the mischief makers.
“Our security source codes are not only robust but continuously enhanced.
We wish to reassure Nigerians that our sensitive and non-sensitive materials, processes and procedures are secure,” he assured.
The INEC Chairman called for support of political parties especially in areas of voter education and sensitisation.
“With 68 political parties and 136 applications being processed, we need raise the awareness of citizens on the manifestos, logos and acronyms of political parties.
“Similarly, we need to find different ways of managing the ballot papers for the general elections.
“As a proactive step, the commission has been working on a number of options regarding the design of the ballot paper and the management of the ballot box.
We shall demonstrate a number of options to this meeting for consideration and suggestions,” he added.
Out of 136 associations seeking registration, Prof.
Yakubu disclosed that 74 have failed the initial assessment of the suitability of their names and logos while 62 have passed the initial assessment.
He added nine associations have undergone verification of their offices and proposed leadership while 16 are either awaiting verification or yet to supply supporting documents.

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