The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has outlined six steps to resolve its logistics issues before the new date of the presidential and national assembly elections.
The election, initially scheduled to hold February 16, was moved by INEC some hours to the election, citing logistics issues as the cause.
According to a breakdown by the commission’s chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, the steps to remedying the problems are:
1. February 17-21: Configuration of Smart Card Readers.
2. February 18: Completion and confirmation of materials.
3. February 20 – 21: Receipt and distribution of sensitive materials made to Local Government Areas.
4. February 21: A refresher course done for ad-hoc staff.
5. February 22: Deployment of personnel to Registration Area Centres.
The commission apologised to Nigerians and all stakeholders, seeking their understanding.
“I want to appeal to Nigerians and all other stakeholders for their understanding in what has been a very difficult decision for the Commission,” Mr Yakubu said.
“As Chairman of INEC, and on behalf of the Commission, we take full responsibility for what happened and we regret any inconvenience our decision might have caused.”
He said the decision, though painful, was for the good of the nation.
“We believe that ultimately, this is for the good of our democracy and country,” he said.
He, therefore, assured the commitment of the commission to conduct free, fair and credible elections.
Mr Yakubu insisted that the postponement was only due to logistics issues, not due to security issues, political influence or lack of resources.
