2023: CENI expresses concern over violent clashes between political parties
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday expressed concern at reports of violent clashes between members of political parties.
Commission Chairman Mahmood Yakubu raised these concerns in Abuja during the training for trainers on his new technology ahead of the 2023 general elections.
A total of 82 civil servants have been recruited from INEC offices across the country to participate in training to improve its performance in the upcoming elections.
PREMIUM TIMES reported an attack on People's Democratic Party (PDP) supporters during its presidential campaign rally in Kaduna on Monday.
The attackers were suspected political thugs.
Mr. Yakubu, in his remarks, said such an act of political brutality is both in violation of the 2022 electoral law and the peace agreement recently signed by the candidates of the participating parties.
“Parties, candidates and their supporters must not, by acts of commission or omission, further complicate the prevailing security situation in the country. A peaceful election campaign is essential to the conduct of peaceful and credible elections,” he said.
He said the CENI would continue to monitor the activities of political parties and promised to convene meetings between the commission and political party leaders to discuss this development, among other concerns.
CoachingExplaining the scope of the training, Mr. Yakubu said that the 82 officials drawn from INEC offices nationwide for the training should train more officials at the zonal level to cover all registration areas of the country.
He said zonal-level officials will in turn be "involved in training ad hoc staff for the 176,846 polling stations nationwide".
He added: “Based on the experience of recent off-cycle elections, the Commission is convinced that training is a critical success factor in deploying technology in elections.
READ ALSO: 2023: INEC deploys technology to ensure Nigerians' votes count » Yakubu"We need to build the capacity of the personnel involved not only to competently manage the devices during the accreditation process, but also to respond effectively to any issues that may arise during the elections.
"Over the next three days, they will receive intensive hands-on training on the new technology. Afterwards, they will train more officials at the zonal level to cover all 8,809 registration areas (or wards) In turn, these officials will be involved in training ad hoc staff for the 176,846 polling stations nationwide.”
Mr. Yakubu urged trainees to pay close attention to training, saying, "Your role as master trainers is critical to the success of training at subsequent levels and ultimately the successful deployment of devices during elections.
“For this reason, the Commission will not accept laxity on your part. for unethical behavior or any act of misconduct. I wish you successful training,.”
Support the integrity and credibility journalism of PREMIUM TIMES Good journalism costs a lot of money. Yet only good journalism can guarantee the possibility of a good society, an accountable democracy and a transparent government. For free and continued access to the best investigative journalism in the country, we ask that you consider providing modest support to this noble endeavour. By contributing to PREMIUM TIMES, you help sustain relevant journalism and keep it free and accessible to everyone.Donate
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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday expressed concern at reports of violent clashes between members of political parties.
Commission Chairman Mahmood Yakubu raised these concerns in Abuja during the training for trainers on his new technology ahead of the 2023 general elections.
A total of 82 civil servants have been recruited from INEC offices across the country to participate in training to improve its performance in the upcoming elections.
PREMIUM TIMES reported an attack on People's Democratic Party (PDP) supporters during its presidential campaign rally in Kaduna on Monday.
The attackers were suspected political thugs.
Mr. Yakubu, in his remarks, said such an act of political brutality is both in violation of the 2022 electoral law and the peace agreement recently signed by the candidates of the participating parties.
“Parties, candidates and their supporters must not, by acts of commission or omission, further complicate the prevailing security situation in the country. A peaceful election campaign is essential to the conduct of peaceful and credible elections,” he said.
He said the CENI would continue to monitor the activities of political parties and promised to convene meetings between the commission and political party leaders to discuss this development, among other concerns.
CoachingExplaining the scope of the training, Mr. Yakubu said that the 82 officials drawn from INEC offices nationwide for the training should train more officials at the zonal level to cover all registration areas of the country.
He said zonal-level officials will in turn be "involved in training ad hoc staff for the 176,846 polling stations nationwide".
He added: “Based on the experience of recent off-cycle elections, the Commission is convinced that training is a critical success factor in deploying technology in elections.
READ ALSO: 2023: INEC deploys technology to ensure Nigerians' votes count » Yakubu"We need to build the capacity of the personnel involved not only to competently manage the devices during the accreditation process, but also to respond effectively to any issues that may arise during the elections.
"Over the next three days, they will receive intensive hands-on training on the new technology. Afterwards, they will train more officials at the zonal level to cover all 8,809 registration areas (or wards) In turn, these officials will be involved in training ad hoc staff for the 176,846 polling stations nationwide.”
Mr. Yakubu urged trainees to pay close attention to training, saying, "Your role as master trainers is critical to the success of training at subsequent levels and ultimately the successful deployment of devices during elections.
“For this reason, the Commission will not accept laxity on your part. for unethical behavior or any act of misconduct. I wish you successful training,.”
Support the integrity and credibility journalism of PREMIUM TIMES Good journalism costs a lot of money. Yet only good journalism can guarantee the possibility of a good society, an accountable democracy and a transparent government. For free and continued access to the best investigative journalism in the country, we ask that you consider providing modest support to this noble endeavour. By contributing to PREMIUM TIMES, you help sustain relevant journalism and keep it free and accessible to everyone.Donate
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