2019: N’Assembly Delaying Our Preparations, Says INEC
• Anambra gets positive security report
By Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
The
Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),
Professor Mahmood Yakubu has asked the National Assembly to expedite
action on the passage of the relevant legislations guiding the conduct
of elections in the country to give the commission ample time to prepare
for the 2019 general election.
He
said that the next general election was only 470 days away, adding that
the early passage of the legal framework would assist INEC in planning
for the elections.
A
statement issued by INEC’s Director in the Department of Voter
Education and Publicity, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, quoted the commission’s
chairman as conveying his concern when members of the Steering Committee
of the Nigerian Institute of Legislative Studies (NILS), led by its
chairman Hon. Aminu Shehu Shagari, visited him at the commission, in
Abuja.
It
said the INEC chairman also spoke on the budget for the 2019 general
election, which he said would be ready next week after the commission
validates and approves its election project plan.
He
said: “The validation and approval of the Strategic Plan 2017-2021 and
Strategic Programme of Action will give us a clear idea of how much it
will cost this nation to conduct the 2019 general election.”
Yakubu
commended the non-partisan nature of the NILS as an organ of the
legislature as well as for its technical assistance to the democratic
process.
He
said the commission will seek to develop greater ties with NILS in the
area of capacity building and training for political parties which would
greatly help the work of INEC..
Earlier,
Shagari, who is also a Member of the House of Representaives Committee
on Electoral Matters, said the visit was to seek the cooperation of the
commission in building a virile democratic institution in Nigeria
through sustainable capacity building.
Meanwhile,
against the background of mounting concerns by some stakeholders over
the alleged plot by some persons to perpetrate violence during the
Anambra governorship election, INEC has said that the November 18 election in the state will be peaceful and crisis-free.
The
commission said at the weekend that a security assessment report it
received showed an 87 per cent peaceful rating across the state.
INEC
said the peaceful rating was revealed in a report on a study conducted
by the Electoral Institute (TEI), in collaboration with some civil
society organisations on Pre-Election Security Assessment of the state
ahead of the election.
The report, which expressed optimism that the November 18 gubernatorial
polls will largely be peaceful, indicated a peace rating of 87 per cent
across the 21 local government areas of the state.
Although
the report did not dismiss chances of isolated cases of security
challenges, it was of the view that all forms of violence could be
avoided if adequate mitigation measures are put in place.
“The
security threats and risk factors in the governorship election should
be seen as an early warning sign which the government, INEC, security
agencies and other stakeholders should take seriously by developing proactive mitigation mechanisms to avoid a breakdown of law and order,” said the report.
The
report also proffered recommendations on how to thwart security
threats, saying these should include: “Promotion of peace, justice and
fairness through sound political education among and by all
stakeholders; fair and equitable dispensation of justice by the
judiciary; demonstration of greater professionalism by the security
agencies; and close surveillance of all groups and associations involved
in disturbing the peace in the state.”
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