Dr. Mutiu Agboke, the Osun State resident electoral commissioner for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has reaffirmed that the state’s revalidation process is still on hold.
During the ongoing stakeholder engagement meetings in Osun State’s local government council areas on Tuesday, Agboke revealed that the Commission’s national headquarters had issued the directive for the suspension, emphasizing that the ruling is still legally binding.
Speaking to stakeholders in Ife North, Ife Central, Ife East, Atakunmosa West, Ilesa East, and Ilesa West, he emphasized that everyone must share responsibility for the country’s growth.
According to him, the meeting’s main goals were to promote communication, establish confidence, and obtain firsthand knowledge of issues that can compromise the election’s smooth running.
The necessity for sufficient security, logistical limitations, and voter indifference were among the main concerns brought forward.
Everyone is involved in the next election. Political party candidates need to acknowledge that God determines the winners and losers, he said.
The REC urged security agencies, transportation unions, and members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to carry out their responsibilities during the election process.
Alleging that some corps members had engaged in electoral malpractice in the past, he cautioned them from doing so.
“Corps members continue to tamper with ballot results and collude with politicians to undermine the election.” Members of these corps will be detained, charged, and imprisoned.
“Use caution. Give your brain a break. During training, pay attention and make sure you’re doing it correctly. “Those who cause needless mutilations or cancellations will face legal action,” he declared.
Noting that all carriers would have to sign undertakings before to the election, he also warned transport unions against any conspiracy.
If a transporter causes problems, INEC would consider it sabotage and penalize the carrier. Don’t allow politicians to take advantage of you in order to undermine the election process. On election day, transportation employees hired on an as-needed basis would not be able to cast ballots.
The Nigeria Police and other security agencies were urged by the REC to make sure collation centers were adequately protected.
“To prevent disruption and violence, I want security agencies led by the police to secure the collation centers with weapons,” he continued.
He insisted that the votes of Osun State residents would ultimately decide the election’s result.
In the meantime, political party members emphasized difficulties such as network problems, poor security in rural villages, insufficient access to the Continuous Voter Registration procedure, and the inability to register voters in isolated places.
In order to improve efficient voter registration, some stakeholders also urged INEC to take places like Asipa and Akinlalu into account for demarcation.
Divisional police officers and electoral officers from all local governments told INEC that they were prepared to guarantee a peaceful process, promising to increase security measures and handle identified flashpoints before the election.
