The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),
Prof Mahmood Yakubu, on Monday assured Nigerians that the smart card
readers would be used in the conduct of the 2019 General Elections.
Yakub gave the assurance amidst controversy over President Muhammadu
Buhari’s withholding of assent to the 2018 Electoral Act Amendment Bill
transmitted to him for the fourth time.
Speaking at the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room National
Stakeholders’ Forum on Elections in Abuja, Yakubu said the technological
device had become an integral part of the country’s electoral process.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu |
‘’The Independent National Electoral Commission will continue to
follow its timetable and schedule of activities as well as its strategic
plan.
‘’The commission assures Nigerians that the smart card reader has
become an integral part of the electoral process and will be deployed
for the conduct of the 2019 general elections,” he said.
The INEC chairman, who was represented by National Commissioner
Festus Okoye, said the commission had improved on its 2015 experience on
the use of smart card readers.
‘’The commission has taken on board the challenges and hitches faced
in the use and deployment of smart card readers in 2015 and has made
significant improvements and upgrade to the said smart card readers.
‘’The upgraded smart card reader is faster, more robust and has new
features that enable it to store additional data and transmit results,”
he said.
Yakubu stressed that the electoral umpire would not compromise on its use for the 2019 elections.
He said the commission had also redesigned the voters’ register and abolished the use of incident forms.
He called on all Nigerians to collaborate with INEC toward guaranteeing of free and fair polls.
The Chairman, House Committee on Electoral and Political Parties
Matters, Rep Aishatu Dukku, said ‘’as INEC takes the lead as the
electoral umpire, all hands must be on deck to provide necessary support
for the smooth conduct of the election.”
Dukku urged Nigerians to shun do-or-die politics.
‘’We must therefore be watchful and not to do anything that would
hinder the smooth conduct of the polls.
Politics should not be seen as a
do-or-die affair; rather, it should be seen as a contest that must
produce a winner based on popular votes,” she said.
The Convener of the Situation Room, Mr Clement Nwankwo, said, based on
the provision of the law, INEC should ensure that security agencies
deployed for the election complied with its instructions.
‘’We are asking INEC as we prepare for the election to ensure that
its powers as provided under Section 29, Sub-section 2 of the Electoral
Act Amendment made in 2015 is used to the utmost,” he said.
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