Osun 2022: Yakubu Assures Stakeholders, Candidates of Free, Fair Election 

Wednesday 13th July 2022

Three weeks after conducting what has widely been adjudged as a free, fair, and credible governorship election in Ekiti State on 18th June, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, yesterday assured Osun State voters of a transparent and credible governorship election, holding on Saturday 16th July 2022.

Speaking at the Stakeholders’ meeting held in Osogbo, Prof. Yakubu told the political parties, Candidates, and the audience that the choice of who becomes the next governor will only be determined by the eligible voters in the State. To be sure, he affirmed that the Commission would not take any action to the advantage or disadvantage of any political party or candidate.

His words: “Our focus is on the processes and procedures as provided by law. So far, we have successfully implemented 12 out of 14 activities in the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the election. The only two outstanding activities are the last day of campaign by political parties, which ends at midnight on Thursday 14th July 2022 and Election Day activities on Saturday 16th July 2022.”

Prof. Yakubu spoke extensively on the Commission’s preparations over the last 12 months. He noted that the Commission held consultative meetings and several engagements with political parties, their candidates, and security agencies at the national, State, and local government levels. 

He continued: “We consulted with stakeholders. We sought for and received the blessings of Royal Fathers and religious leaders. We have recruited, trained, and carefully screened all categories of ad-hoc staff to be deployed to the field. All non-sensitive materials for the election have been delivered to all our 30 Local Government Area offices across the State. Voter education and sensitisation are ongoing. We have made arrangements for the transportation of personnel and materials to ensure that polling units open on schedule on Election Day. For more effective supervision of the process, we are deploying five National Commissioners, 12 Resident Electoral Commissioners and many senior officials to support our state office here in Osun to deliver credible elections.

Collection of Permanent Voters’ Cards

The INEC Chairman said that voter registration was carried out all over the State, including the devolution of the exercise to the 332 Wards across the State. “We have printed and delivered the Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) for collection by all valid registrants in the State,” he stated. “When we visited Osun last week to assess our readiness for the election, concerns were expressed about the availability of the PVCs, especially for those who applied for transfer of their registration to Osun State or new locations within the State. I am glad to report that we have delivered the PVCs for fresh registrants, transfers, and requests for replacement of cards as a result of loss, damage, or incorrect personal details such as names, dates of birth etc., as provided by law.”

Prof Yakubu revealed that out of the 1,955,657 registered voters in Osun State, 1,479,595 or 76 per cent of them have already collected their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) as of 10th July 2022. “We are also updating our records to provide a detailed breakdown of PVCs collected by polling units,” he said. “This will be concluded and made available on Friday 15th July 2022. This is important because the total number of PVCs collected will be used to determine the margin of lead principle as against the total number of registered voters in line with our Regulations and Guidelines for the Conduct of Elections 2022 derived from the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.” 

He also explained the additional measures taken to ensure that voters get their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs). According to him, since last Thursday, the Commission had devolved the collection of PVCs from its 30 local government offices to each of the 332 Wards across the State. The Commission’s staff have also been working every day of the week, including the weekend and public holidays to serve voters. Besides, the deadline for the collection was further extended to 24 hours before the election. He appealed to all registered voters yet to collect their PVCs to seize the opportunity to do so.

Special Consideration for Persons with Disabilities

To underscore its commitment to an inclusive, credible, and transparent electoral process, the Commission, Prof. Yakubu averred, is deploying assistive devices for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) to have a more pleasant voting experience on Election Day. 

Specifically, magnifying glasses, Braille Ballot Guide and Posters for voters with hard of hearing conditions will be deployed at the polling unit level in areas of need, based on data collected in collaboration with the PwD community. 

He said: “Similarly, our revised Regulations and Guidelines provide for priority to be accorded at polling units to PwDs without waiting in long queues during voting as is the case with elderly people, pregnant women and nursing mothers.”

BVAS Will be Deployed 

Prof. Yakubu also affirmed that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) would be deployed for voter accreditation and uploading of election results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) on election day as a matter of practice and a requirement of the law.

He noted that the Commission had taken adequate steps to ensure that the BVAS machines function optimally during the accreditation, based on the lessons learnt from the conduct of previous elections.

He said: “A few weeks ago, a mock accreditation exercise was conducted in polling units across the State. I personally observed the exercise in Osogbo and Boripe LGAs in Osun Central as well as Ede South and Egbedore LGAs in Osun West Senatorial Districts. I also visited our Ife Central, Ife East and Ife North LGA offices in Osun East Senatorial District. We are encouraged by the successful outcome of the mock exercise and the level of preparations by our offices. We have also trained enough Registration Area Technical Support Staff (RATECHs) and made adequate transportation arrangements for their rapid response in the event of reported glitches on Election Day.”

Polling Agents, Observer Groups, and the Media

Prof. Yakubu said the Commission accredited polling agents nominated by political parties for the 3,763 polling units, 332 Ward collation centres, 30 Local Government collation centres and the State Collation Centre where the final declaration of result will be made. Besides, 79 domestic and eight international Observer groups were accredited. They will deploy 7,790 field observers. A total of 92 national and two international media organisations accredited for the election will deploy 624 accredited journalists for the exercise.

The INEC Chairman added: “On Election Day, the national headquarters of INEC in Abuja will monitor the election throughout the State. Our Zoom Situation Room will be activated. We are working to ensure that accredited observers and the media are invited to join us at intervals to provide live reports from the field. At the same time, citizens can contact us on our various platforms such as the toll-free INEC Citizens Contact Centre (ICCC) telephone line in addition to our Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram accounts.”

In his welcome remarks, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Osun, Prof. Abdulganiy  Raji,  said the Commission was ready for the Saturday election. 

He disclosed that all non-sensitive materials had been batched according to individual Polling Units and ready to be conveyed to the RACs. In addition, he said poll officials and security agents have been trained and ready for deployment.  

Prof. Raji explained that flashpoints in the State had been identified, while strategies have been mapped out to resolve issues that could truncate the electoral process. The REC also averred: “the impressive outcome experienced in the Ekiti State Governorship Election is a good reflection of the level of planning and preparation for the Osun governorship election. We are super ready to beat Ekiti’s record in Osun State. 

In his remarks, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, said all the security officials to be deployed for the election have been exposed to the Code of Conduct of Operations for election security. 

The IGP disclosed that the Police would deploy 21,000 officers for the exercise, assuring that the officers had all been cautioned and were aware that they would be held responsible for any conduct contrary to the rules for securing elections. 

IGP Baba also assured that the State had been adequately mapped out with adequate strategies to deal with any threat to the electoral process. He said no individual or group will be allowed to derail the electoral process, as all persons who pose any threat to the election’s free, fair, and credible conduct will be apprehended and made to face the full wrath of the law; irrespective of their status. 

The Ooni of Ife, and Chairman of the Council of Traditional Rulers in Osun state, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, commended INEC for its dedication to visible improvements in the electoral process. He was particularly pleased with the BVAS, which he said would revolutionise and bring sanity to the electoral process. 

The Paramount ruler called on candidates in the election to be civil in their engagements and said that no man’s ambition was more significant than the State. He said everything must be done to ensure a peaceful governorship election.