FCT: INEC Set to Conduct 69 Elections on Saturday

* Restriction of movement from 6am to 4pm
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

Ahead of Saturday’s Area Councils’ elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that every arrangement is in place for a free, fair and credible poll.

Addressing stakeholders during a sensitization meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, the Chairman of the Commission, Professor Mamood Yakubu, urged the electorate to ensure they go to polling units with their permanent voters’ cards to participate in the elections.

Similarly, the Resident Electoral Commissioner in charge of the FCT, Professor Jacob Jatau, has pleaded with the electorate and political parties to be peaceful and allow the election to hold without rancour.

He said that the plea became necessary as “the Commission is not comfortable with the number of those who have collected their PVCs despite the publicity and voter education outreaches.”

He stated that out of the 1,020,799 registered voters, only 646,883 voters have so far collected their PVCs while the remaining others remained uncollected.

According to him,”we want to appeal to the good people of the Federal Capital Territory to use the remaining two days to go to INEC’s Offices in the Six Area Councils to collect their PVCs from 8am to 4pm”.
Prof. Jatau however made it clear that,”only those have collected their PVCs will be allowed to vote as readers will be deployed at the 562 polling Units,2,207 voting points and 245 voting points settlements”.

On the security during the poll, the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase warned potential trouble makers to keep off the FCT and its environs before, during and after the elections.