INEC: 2023 Polls will Gulp N305bn

* Suspends Ekiti by-election

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

The conduct of 2023 general election in the country will cost N305 billion, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmud Yakubu has said.

He also announced the suspension of Ekiti Assembly by-election after four unsuccessful attempts by the commission.

Speaking while appearing before the Senate Committee on Appropriations on Monday, the INEC boss stated that only N100 billion had so far been released by government.

He, however, stressed that the amount released is not sufficient for the commission to adequately prepare for the polls.

Yakubu added that the N305 billion required is different from the N40 billion yearly budget of the electoral body.

According to him, “The commission made a submission through the executive being part of the executive body. We made a submission for N305 billion for the 2023 general election in a very comprehensive 22-page document with 260 budget lines.

“In submitting the executive proposal to the National Assembly, the sum of N140 billion was made available to INEC as a one line item in the budget and as usual we broke it down and submitted same to the committee that oversights INEC in both the House and the Senate.

“The N140 billion was broken into two, we take it that N40 billion is our regular budget as an agency of government and N100 billion was the first tranche of the 2022 budget and we have gone ahead to make provisions accordingly.

“For the N40 billion annual budget are also for elections that we are supposed to conduct particularly off season elections. It may interest the committee to know that we have eight by-election pending; three federal constituencies and five state constituencies. In fact, the last vacancy occured only last Wednesday following the death of a member representing Jiwa West in Kaduna State.”

In making a case for more releases from the N205 billion balance, the INEC chairman highlighted activities that must be carried out ahead of the 2023 general election.

He said: “What we have done is to look at the activities that we have to conduct before the general election.

“There are activities that must be concluded. For instance, if you are going to replace some of the critical facilities like ballot boxes, voting cubicles, these things must be done before the election.

“Party primaries must be conducted and concluded before the election and names of candidates submitted, registration of voter’s would have to be concluded before the election. Printing of the permanent voter’s card would have to be concluded before the election and then some of the critical election technology for the 2023 general election must be concluded and procured before the election.”

On the controversial Ekiti East by-election, the INEC boss said it has been suspended indefinitely having tried four times without success.

According to him, in the last attempt, voters were killed on the queue, as well as security operatives and electoral officers at polling units.

“INEC will never reward bad behaviour. The election can only be repeated in June next year during the gubernatorial election,” he stated.

In his remarks, the Committee Chairman, Senator Jibrin Barau, gave an assurance that the required appropriation would be made for the electoral body in the 2022 budget in the general interest of Nigerians.

He told newsmen after the session that the report of his committee on 2022 budget proposals will be laid at plenary of both chambers on Tuesday, considered and passed.