The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, said yesterday that the agency has not been formally notified of the existing vacancy in the Adamawa State Government House.

Jega, at an interactive with journalist in Abuja at the behest of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said although as citizens of Nigeria, they read and heard in the media of the impeachment of Governor Murtala Nyako, INEC has not been formally notified as is required to prepare for a replacement. He said also that in the preparations for a clean election in Osun State next month. INEC has appointed an Acting Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in reaction to allegations that the all.

“We have investigated the allegations against the Osun REC and found them spurious, but in order not to be seen as insensitive and to assure parties that we are doing our work as unbiased umpire, we have appointed an interim REC for the election.

“Our REC is not indicted and we state that clearly, but because we want to demonstrate transparent fairness, we have appointed a new person to supervise. We did it in Anambra, Edo and some other states in the past to avoid allegations of bias. So, after the election, the Osun REC remains in office.”

On the preparedness of INEC to conduct election to fill the vacancy created by Nyako’s impeachment, he said INEC has not got formal notification to that effect.

“Yes, we have heard of the impeachment of the former governor just like every other Nigerian heard, but we have not been formally informed as to start making preparations to conduct an election to fill the vacancy. We need to be informed of the vacancy to start preparing. But all the same, we are law abiding citizens, so we already know what is involved and would do our best to comply with the requirement of the law to conduct another election.

And the law is also very clear that whoever fills that vacancy, completes the tenure of the impeached governor. So, the meaning is that after conducting an election in Adamawa in the next three months, there should be another gubernatorial election in the state next year during the general election.”

Regarding the Osun poll, Jega assured that INEC is fully ready and has done all possible to ensure it comes out one of the best the body ever conducted.

“We admit, like I had done in the past that there were some mistakes in Anambra State earlier in the year. But many people took that little error to overshadow all the things we did right.

We did well in Anambra, no doubt, apart from the little flaw in Idemili North.

“But we improved on that record in Ekiti last month expectation, given the preparations on ground that Osun would be better than Ekiti. For instance, we continued with the colour coding of ballot papers in the local governments areas (LGAs), where particular colours of ballots were specifically for particular LGAs. It was a means of checking fraud, so that if a particular colour of ballots meant for LGA B are seen in LGA K, the intent to rig and manipulate would be easily noticed.

We are continuing with that in Osun and we also have furthered our plans to beat riggers or those that plan to truncate the system.” not to conduct elections next year in the states with emergency rule as a result of insecurity. “I said it earlier and was misquoted or misunderstood, and I wan to repeat that INEC is prepared and ready to conduct elections next year in all the states of the federation, including those states where the emergency rule applies or is in force as a result of insecurity.

We have no reason to exempt them from elections, therefore, elections, just as in other states, should be expected there And must hold there.” And in order to make the work more transparent and acceptable, he said INEC was ready and plans to stagger next year elections to stretch into two weeks to make for better implementation.

Source Collpress News

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