A non-governmental organisation, Yiaga Africa, has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to implement its guidelines in the Edo State gubernatorial election scheduled for Saturday without favouritism or ill will.
He also expressed concern about security threats and incitement to vote during the elections.
Blueprint About 2.2 million registered voters are reported to be planning to participate during the exercise, with Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party (LP) being the leading contenders.
Yiaga Africa CEO Samson Itodo disclosed this to journalists in Benin City on Thursday during the official opening of the Watching The Vote (WTV) Data Centre and pre-election briefing.
Itodo, who said the organization had monitored elections in Nigeria and other African countries, noted that they measured electoral integrity using the Process and Results Verification for Transparency (PRVT) methodology.
He said Yiaga Africa had deployed 35 trained and accredited observers to monitor the elections.
Itodo added that the observers deployed include 300 stationary observers who will be placed in a randomly selected sample of 300 polling units across the 18 local government areas of the state.
…Security concerns
Also speaking, the Chairperson of Yiaga Africa Edo 2024 Electoral Mission, Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, tasked INEC to “demonstrate its capacity to conduct transparent, credible and efficient elections.”
He urged voters to show resilience by turning out to vote at their various polling stations.
The group, according to Abdullahi, had identified eight local government areas that could potentially become flashpoints in the ongoing gubernatorial election process.
He listed them as follows: Ikpoba/Okha, Oredo, Egor, Ovia Southwest, Ovia Northeast, Esan Southeast, Etsako West and Etsako East.
The head of the mission warned that there is a high probability that politicians will resort to violence in their attempt to manipulate the upcoming elections.
The group referred to the involvement of cult groups in the campaign process and the proliferation of small arms on a large scale, not only in the state but across the country.
He said: “The activities of cult groups and political thugs have intensified amid the proliferation of small arms and light weapons. YIAGA Africa is concerned that politicians may tactically employ violence and intimidation to suppress voters in certain polling stations and local governments.”
He added: “Armed groups and political thugs may disrupt the deployment of electoral materials by INEC or elections at polling stations to influence the outcome of the elections.
“The unstable security environment in these local governments requires a strategic and neutral deployment of security forces.”
The group called on security agents to be professional before, during and after the elections, to arrest electoral violators and also to respect the rights of citizens, the media and observers.
…Incentive to vote
