The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC Prof Mahmud Yakubu has once again assured Nigerians that the votes of the electorates would determine the winner of next year’s general election.
Prof Yakubu gave the indication at the sixth annual conference of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) held in Lagos with the theme, ‘2023 Elections: Managing the Process for Credible Outcome’.
Yakubu said the commission has Commission has introduced new innovations which will be supported by deployment of appropriate technology, to protect the sanctity of the choice made by Nigerians at the polls ranging from voter registration to voter accreditation and result management.
” The deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) with its dual fingerprint and facial biometric accreditation process has ensured that only genuine voters are accredited to vote during election. This has curtailed the incidence of multiple voting and other sharp practices associated with voter accreditation during elections. The BVAS has come to stay and will be the only means by which voters will be accredited in the 2023 General Election”.
The Inec boss further warned political parties and their candidates to abide by the peace accord as a way to guarantee peaceful electioneering campaign even as he restated the commitment of the commission to pay attention to the conduct of parties, candidates and their supporters.
“As a regulator, the Commission will play its role to ensure compliance with the provision of the law as well as our guidelines and regulations. We will pay particular attention to peaceful campaign devoid of abusive, intemperate and slanderous language as well as the use of innuendoes or insinuations likely to provoke a counter-reaction resulting in the breach of the peace. Similarly, we will pay special attention to the observance of limits on party and candidate finance. I urge political parties and candidates to carefully study the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 and familiarise themselves with their obligations as well as the penalties under the law,he said.
Prof Yakubu further urged GOCOP to use it’s network to curb fake news which he said is a challenge to the electoral process
“We are happy to note that you have your peer review mechanism using your leaders to regularly remind every member of the need for credible journalism. This is highly commendable. We urge you extend this beyond GOCOP to serve as a bulwark against the menace of fake news”.