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- Gives Parties May 20 deadline for Submission of Ondo Candidates
From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned political parties that fielded candidates for the forthcoming Edo governorship election to continue to maintain law and order ahead of the poll.
The commission also gave the 18 parties participating in the Ondo governorship election Monday, May 20 deadline to nominate candidates before the portal automatically shuts down by 6.00 pm.
The chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, made the warning in his remarks at the second regular quarterly consultative meeting with political parties held in Abuja.
Yakubu also revealed that the electoral umpire has resumed Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) in the two states to enable eligible citizens who are not registered voters to do so. He urged registered voters to transfer their registration from other states of the federation to Edo and Ondo States or from one location to another within the two states.
According to the electoral umpire; “Let me therefore seize this opportunity to once again reiterate to party leaders the need to continue to maintain law and order during the electioneering process and beyond. As we inch closer to Election Day in Edo State, it is also imperative to remind political parties of the need to adhere strictly to the timeline for the upload of the list of polling and collation agents to the dedicated portal.
“Doing so will enable the commission to produce and deliver the identity cards in good time for the expected 76,823 Polling Unit agents and 3,587 Ward, Local Government and State collation agents for the 17 political parties participating in the election.
“Turning to Ondo State, political parties have just concluded their primaries. Eighteen (18) political parties conducted primaries monitored by the commission. I wish to remind you that parties have one week to the deadline for the nomination of candidates which is 6.00 pm on Monday 20th May 2024 when the portal automatically shuts down. I urge you to adhere strictly to the deadline.
“Political parties have been given 23 days (over three weeks) from the end of primaries to prepare and submit the list of only two candidates (governorship candidate and running mate) to the commission. There will be no extension of time,” he said.
On the CVR, Yakubu said: “As the elections in the two states approach, the commission has decided to resume the CVR in the two states to enable eligible citizens who are not registered voters to do so. Similarly, those who are registered voters also have the opportunity to transfer their registration from other states of the federation to Edo and Ondo States or from one location to another within the two states.
“Let me reiterate that the CVR is only open to new registrants and those who seek to transfer their registration. Persons who are registered as voters should not attempt to register again as double or multiple registration is illegal. Lost or damaged voters’ cards will be replaced during the exercise but this does require fresh registration.
“The CVR in Edo and Ondo States will take place simultaneously from Monday 27th May 2024 to Wednesday 5th June 2024 from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm daily including the weekend. Taking into consideration the limited time to the governorship elections, the commission has decided to conduct the registration at the ward level and our state headquarters instead of our Local Government offices and a few designated centres as was the case in the past.
“This means that there will be 192 Ward registration centres in Edo State and 203 centres in Ondo State, in addition to our state offices in Benin City and Akure, making a total of 397 walk-in registration centres in the two states.
“There will be no online pre-registration option in the two states because of time constraints. Each centre will be managed by two officials drawn from our regular staff and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). In the next few days, the Commission will commence the training of at least 794 officials for the exercise.
“The locations of the registration centres as well as other relevant information have been compiled in a detailed 28-page document included in your folders for this meeting. The same information will be uploaded to our website and social media platforms for public information shortly.
“The commission therefore appeals to political parties and other stakeholders to join us in mobilising prospective registrants for the exercise, particularly on the need to register early and not wait until the deadline approaches when the registration centres are inundated by eleventh-hour registrants,” he noted.
