YIAGA AFRICA has said the pre-election violence and arms stockpiling contributed immensely to voter apathy in the state while Election Day violence have made people resigned to faith that the state may not achieve credible elections.
According to the Executive Director, Samson Itodo in a press statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday said observers also revealed post-election skirmishes which according to them were reprisals by victims of electoral violence.
He said the cohort of observers drawn from all Local Government Areas of both state suggested recommendations while also declaring readiness to lead campaign to fix Nigeria’s elections.
“We are inspired to see the level of commitment and sacrifice citizens are ready to make in a bid to improve the country’s electoral process.
“The Long-Term Observers (LTOs) who commence observation of the Governorship elections right from the pre-election environment raised series of concerns that affected the process.
“During the debrief session where citizen observers share experiences and lessons learnt during the November 18, 2019 elections, LTOs who also recruited polling unit observers raised critical issues pertinent of which is electoral security.
“The debrief session led by Yiaga Africa’s Director of programs, Cynthia Mbamalu, Elections Manager Paul James, Knowledge Management and Learning Manager, Safiya Bichi successfully unearth critical issues that affected the conduct of the Kogi Governorship elections.
“Major concerns raised include what was described as inaction of the security agencies contributed immensely to the violation of electoral laws during the election which had negative effects on the elections.
