The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Jigawa has declared its readiness to conduct the presidential and National Assembly elections on Saturday, February 25, 2023. In a media briefing held in Dutse, the state capital, Professor Muhammad Lawal, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) announced that the commission had cleared 2,292,372 eligible voters for the election across 4,519 polling units in the state.
The REC also confirmed that sensitive and non-sensitive election materials, including the Biometric Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), had been distributed to the 27 Local Government Areas of the state. He added that the commission had closely monitored all political parties' campaign activities in the state without any major setbacks.
According to Mr Lawal, Jigawa state has a total of 2,351,298 registered voters, out of which 1,209,490 were male and 1,141,808 were female. He further stated that a total of 58,926 permanent voter cards (PVCs) were not issued to their owners due to issues such as dual registration or other related problems.
The REC emphasized the importance of the voters' role in ensuring a credible and peaceful electoral process and urged them to come out en masse to exercise their franchise. He assured the public that INEC had put adequate measures in place to ensure a free, fair, and transparent electoral process in Jigawa state.
“We’ve also conducted pre-election briefings for foreign and domestic observers, as well as political parties in the state.
“So far, the commission has been putting in its best to ensure free, fair, credible and all-inclusive general elections.
“As major stakeholders, I enjoin all to join hands with the commission to ensure credible elections,” the REC said.
(NAN)