Bye-election: INEC Deploys Over 400 Ad-hoc Staff For Benue Poll

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Benue State boasted on Friday that it had successfully trained more than 400 ad-hoc staff for the upcoming bye-election on Saturday.

Naija News reports that the by-election scheduled to be held in the state tomorrow is meant to fill the vacant position of Guma 1 state constituency in the state assembly.

The previous winner of the election, who emerged victorious on March 18, 2023, has left his post to serve as a commissioner in the cabinet of Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia.

Speaking with journalists on the phone earlier today, the Public Relations Officer of the INEC office in Makurdi, Terkaa Andyar, confirmed that all nonsensitive materials required for the election had been dispatched to the local government area.

When asked about the level of preparation for the bye-election, Andyar stated that nonsensitive materials have already been sent to Guma LGA.

“Other sensitive materials that are still with us will be moved to Guma any moment from now so that they can be taken to the state constituency headquarters in Daudu.

“We have transferred over 400 ad-hoc staff and already posted for the exercise tomorrow,” he told the PUNCH.

Andyar mentioned that the commission had conducted a series of meetings with security chiefs in the state to ensure sufficient security measures were in place during and after the election.

In addition to Benue State, there will be bye-elections held in Ebonyi, Yobe, Kebbi, Lagos, Ondo, Taraba, Benue, Borno, Kaduna, Plateau, and Akwa Ibom, Naija News reports.

Also, there would be bye-elections in Anambra, Cross River, Delta, Enugu, Jigawa, Katsina, Adamawa, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Kano, Nasarawa, Niger, Oyo, Sokoto, and Zamfara.