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INEC Withdraws Over 70 Certificates Of Return, Give Reasons

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3 Days To 2023 Governorship Election, INEC Sends Warning To Political Parties, Supporters

INEC Speaks On Why It Is Withdrawing Certificates Of Return

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has disclosed that it has so far withdrawn about 70 certificates of return previously issued to candidates in the 2019 general election.

Mr. Festus Okoye, INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information, Publicity and Voter Education made the revelation yesterday at the Election Reform Roundtable organised by the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room and Kofi Annan Foundation in Abuja.

According to him, the commission is still reviewing other cases of electoral wrongdoing from the 2019 election.

Mr. Okoye also touched on the challenges the electoral umpire is facing over pre-election and post-election matters, disclosing INEC had about 809 pre-election cases to contend with as against 800 post-election cases.

“The implication is that the commission has more pre-election matters than post-election cases. As at yesterday, the INEC has withdrawn and reissued over 70 certificates of return issued to those who were previously elected into various state and national elective offices and there are more to be voided and reissued in the days ahead,” he said.

Okoye, however, blamed the high rate of issues surrounding certificates of return to party primaries and not the commission’s inefficiency.

He added that the electoral umpire, however, has plans to engage the political parties in a dialogue on how to correct the abnormalities in their internal operations.