INEC Meets, Promises Improved Governorship Poll

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has promised that the preparations and conduct of the March 9 governorship elections will be a tremendous improvement on the presidential and National Assembly elections.

Speaking yesterday at the headquarters of the electoral body during a preparatory summit of the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs), the INEC boss charged the RECs to take a cue from the presidential election.

Yakubu stressed the need for the RECs to implement corrections learned from challenges faced in the February 23 exercise in the March 9 polls.

According to him, the preparations and conduct of the coming elections must be a tremendous improvement of the just concluded exercise.

He said the purpose of the meeting with the RECs was to keep with the tradition of the commission.

According to him, “Once we conduct the national election, we take stock and review, so that processes and procedures are strengthened learning from period of previous elections before we go into state elections.”

Yakubu said since the RECs were in Abuja with the State Collation Officers for the presidential election, it was important for the commission to meet and review the experiences of the last elections with a view to strengthening its processes towards a successful conduct of the state elections on Saturday, March 9.

He said, “The next election is going to hold on Saturday March 9 and this is going to be the governorship in 29 states of the federation.”

“As you are aware, in seven states the governorship elections are staggered and conducted off season. We have since concluded these elections.

So, there will be governorship election in 29 states and in all the states of the federation. There will be state assemblies by-election and in the FCT where the Area Council election coincides with the general election. We are also conducting election in 68 constituencies and that will be six council chairmen and 52 councilors.
“We have gone very far with the arrangements for the elections, election will hold on March 9 wi