By Nsan Ndoma-Neji, Calabar
In it’s bid to conduct successful, peaceful and credible presidential and National Assembly elections, scheduled for February 25, the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on Wenesday succeeded in moving sensitive election materials from its state secretariat to the 18local government area of Cross River State.
Sensitive election materials moved by INEC includes Bimodal Voter Accreditation, BVAS, machines, election result sheets, as well as ballot papers from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, in Cross River State.
Among those who witnessed the distribution of the sensitive materials are all security agencies in the state – personnel of the Nigerian Police, Nigerian Army, National Security mad Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, Nigerian Immigration Service, NIS, the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, and the Department of State Security, DSS.
Also present at the INEC secretariat were representatives of political parties whose party had been warming up ahead of Saturday’s poll, and representatives of civil society organisations, CSOs, and community-based organisations, CBOs.
Speaking during the sensitive materials distribution, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, in Cross River State, Prof. Gabriel Yomere, stated that the commission saw the need to extend invitation to all stakeholders in the election to witness the exercise to enable everyone know what is happening, so that people can disabuse their minds of presumed illegal act.
Yomere averred that the 3281 BVAS machines to be used for the exercise have been configured to tally with the polling unit where they will be used.
The REC said, “They have also been charged to last for 48 hours, so we don’t envisage any problem of power as regard the usage of the BVAS.
“As for the result sheets, they remained intact the way they were brought from where they came from.”
In another development, security agencies operating in the state, also re-assured the electorate in the state of their safety during the elections.
Speaking on the issue, the Commissioner of Police in charge of elections in the state, Kabiru Ibrahim, stressed that all the flash points in the state would be under serious surveillance to ensure maximum security is given to the state.
He said, “We will be fair and professional in our duties and we implore all to be orderly during the process, as all necessary security protection will be given to all.
Recall that about 295 candidates would participate in the general elections scheduled for February 25 and March 11 in Cross River State.
Those seeking to occupy political offices would jostle for the 36 elective positions, including the seat of governor, three Senate seats, seven House of Representatives seats and 25 seats in the state House of Assembly.
A breakdown of these figure shows that 11 candidates are jostling for the position of the state governor; 28 candidates are in the race for the Senate; 69 battling for the House of Representatives, while 187 candidates are in the race for the state House of Assembly seats.
Findings by CompassNG revealed that out of the 17 registered political parties operating in Cross River, only 12 fielded candidates to vie for elective positions in the state.
