The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has urged staff members of the INEC to remain non-partisan and maintain their integrity ahead of the Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi gubernatorial elections.
Yakubu stated this when he visited some INEC offices to assess the preparations for the November 11 Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi gubernatorial elections.
This is contained in INEC’s bulletin in Abuja.
He stressed that INEC was committed to conducting credible elections in the states.
“INEC is not a political party and does not have a candidate in the November 11 governorship election.
“All we are going to do is to ensure that the people of Bayelsa and Imo States choose whoever they want to be their governors, and our responsibility is to protect the people’s choice,” he said.
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu also called on the Electoral Officers (Eos) in both states to ensure that all Registration Area Centres (RACs) were fully activated early enough to allow the smooth conduct of the election.
Yakubu disclosed that part of the commission’s determination was to ensure that electoral officials lived up to their responsibilities on election day.
He stated that on Friday, November 10, a refresher training would be organised in addition to the refresher training conducted on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
According to the bulletin, the commissio’s chairman and his entourage also met with members of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICESS) in both states.
Addressing the heads of the security agencies, Yakubu stressed that the principal aim of the meeting was to assess their readiness in preparation for the Saturday election.
He added that measures to guarantee the protection of voters, collation centres, materials, election personnel, and transport providers were among the significant security issues discussed throughout the meeting.
He also toured some of INEC’s facilities in Yenagoa to examine the available non-sensitive materials ahead of the off-cycle election.
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu was accompanied by the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and the National Commissioners in both states.