INEC issues notice of election for Ekiti poll

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Wednesday issued a notice of election for the July 14, 2018 governorship poll in Ekiti State.

While the notice means that political parties can now begin activities toward the conduct of the election, the electoral body however said that the ban on campaigns will be lifted on April 14.

The state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Professor AbdulGaniyi Olayinka Raji, made the announcement when he addressed a briefing at INEC’s office in Ado-Ekiti, explaining that the notice was issued 90 days to the election.

Raji assured that INEC was committed at ensuring a conduct of credible, transparent, free and fair election in Ekiti State.

He further said that in accordance with Section 30 (1) of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended, INEC must give a notice of 90 days, adding, that campaigns would begin from April 15 and end midnight of July 12.

He said that parties will on June 30 submit names of their agents and that any party which fails to meet up with the date will not have any agent.

“Any party that fails to submit names of its agents by June 30 will not be allowed to field agents at the election.

“After July 12, no jingles or adverts of candidates and parties will be entertained. It is the job of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and security agencies to enforce the law,” he said.

He noted that as part of efforts to ensure more people registered for the election that 531 centres had been created and that Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) in the new centres would commence between April 11 and 16 in 177 registration areas.

“In line with Section 30 (1) of the Electoral Act 2013 as amended, it provides that not later than 90 days to the election, INEC must give the notice of election and by the constitution, today marks the day we should give the notice of election.

“As the Resident Electoral Commissioner, and on behalf of the leadership of the commission, I give the notice of the governorship election today 90 days to the poll.

“I urge people who are yet to register and have attained 18 years to register, as we are moving the centres to them. We want to remove bottlenecks people complain of; from economic to distance and some political reasons. We are bringing registration to their doorsteps.

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“We promise the people that a few weeks after the exercise; their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will be ready for collection. We expect them to go to our offices for their cards, because no PVC, no election,” Raji said.

According to the REC, 513,000 PVCs have been distributed while 218,000 cards are yet to be collected by those who registered before April 2017.

He therefore advised stakeholders to cooperate with INEC to ensure a successful poll.

Meanwhile INEC spokesman in the state, Taiwo Gbadegesin, at a public enlightenment forum in Ado-Ekiti, on Wednesday advised those yet to pick their PVCs to do so, saying they would be disenfranchised without PVCs.

Gbadegesin said that those who registered for PVCs from April 2017 till date, that their cards were yet to be delivered from Abuja, promising that the cards would be distributed as soon as they were delivered to the Ekiti State office of INEC.

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