2023: IGP Speaks On Conduct Of Election In South East

The Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba has said that elections will be held in the South-east in 2023.

Speaking at the opening of the ‘South-East 2023 Elections Security Management Workshop’ in Enugu on Saturday, Baba explained that efforts were being made to secure people’s votes.

The IGP, who was represented by AIG Isaac Akinmoyede, stated that the force was working with other security outfits to make sure the 2023 elections are very peaceful.

He said: “We are brainstorming together to fashion out ways to deal with existing and emerging security threats headlong within the south-east,”

“It is clear that with robust synergy, cooperation and joint operations, this area will be the most peaceful and our people will surely come out to exercise their civic responsibility.

We are working relentlessly on the goal of ensuring that election holds in the south-east and people’s votes are secured and it will definitely count.”

2023: Election Results Will Be Collated Manually – INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday disclosed that results from the 2023 general elections would be collated manually.

The electoral body adopted this means despite the electronic transmission of results.

According to the National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, INEC would transmit results from polling units to its result-viewing portal, IReV.

Okoye further stated that the Electoral Act was clear on how collation should be done.

The INEC official, in an interview with Punch, said, “There is a marked difference between the transfer/transmission of results and the collation of results. Section 50(2) of the Electoral Act, 2022 gives the commission the absolute discretion to determine the mode and procedure of voting in an election and the transmission of election results.

“Sections 60 and 62 of the Electoral Act govern post-election procedure and collation of election results. Section 60(1) of the Act provides that the presiding officer shall, after counting the votes at a polling unit, enter the votes scored by each candidate in a form to be prescribed by the commission.

“Section 60(5) of the Act makes it mandatory that the presiding officer shall transfer the results, including a total number of accredited voters and the results of the ballot in a manner prescribed by the commission. Thereafter, the presiding officer shall after recording and announcing the results deliver the same along with election materials under security and accompanied by the candidates or their polling agents, available to such person as may be prescribed by the commission.

“The implication of this is that the collation process of results is still essentially manual, but the collation officer must collate subject to his verification and confirmation that the number of accredited voters stated on the collated result is correct and consistent with the number of accredited voters recorded and transmitted directly from polling units.”