Wale JAGUN
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, INEC Chairman
Electorate in Ikorodu division have commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for their handling of the first phase of the 2019 general elections after the earlier postponement which drew condemnation from Nigerians.
Assessing the conduct of the Presidential/National Assembly elections held on Saturday, February 23, under the leadership of Prof. Mahmood Yakubu in comparison with the one conducted in 2015 by his predecessor, Prof. Attairu Jega, participants on THE IMPACT WhatssAp Chat platform stated that INEC has improved.
They, however, called for electoral reform to make future elections in Nigeria credible.
A former aspirant for the Ikorodu Federal Constituency seat at the House of Representatives, Mr Owolabi Anifowoshe, stated that INEC has improved on its operations compared to what happened in 2015.
He called for the deployment of more technologies to reduce cases of rigging and other electoral malpractices.
“INEC has been improving in every elections . The simultaneous accreditation and voting is a good one because it saves time and make the polling booths not too crowded as people just voted and leave. It’s a great improvement. The smart card reader this time around works really faster too.
“INEC should embrace more technologies as this will reduce the possibility of rigging. I give them a thumbs up”.
Mr Monday Ohi Obadan, a community leader and social media commentator, stated that the dynamism under which the two chairmen operated were different but commended both for their leadership, especially in handling their jobs.
“There is little to compare… In my opinion, both of them operated through diverse and different circumstances. Jega(Prof. Attairu Jega) worked with lesser parties compared to Yaqub (Prof. Mahmood Yakubu) who had barrage of political parties and interest to work with.
“However, both shared same similarities of comportment, firmness and fairness”.
Princess Aderoju Ladega, a community activist in her contribution, called for the deployment of technology in the country’s voting system and improved security during elections .
“All the electioneering process; the pre-planning, voting and counting, by now should be auto run.
“Imagine a situation where high number of registered voters was announced in some states but the number of PVCs released to people was poor.
“On the election day, so many voters were disturbed from enfranchising their civic responsibility. INEC should be blamed for this for not putting in place security measures to curtail this”, she alleged.
She also called for quick resolution of all political differences after the 2019 general elections.
“Our political system is highly fractured. After the Governorship and Assemblies elections, we need to start rebuilding the broken walls in projection towards 2023 General Elections”.
Comrade Muyideen Yusuf, the Coordinator, National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Ikorodu West Local Council Development Area (LCDA) chapter, while commending INEC for improved conduct of the 2019 general elections, also pointed out that there are irregularities that need to be addressed in future elections.
“Regarding the performance of the present Electoral umpire headed by Professor Mohamood Yakubu, I commend his sagacity for organizing a credible election, yet, there are some irregularities in some places that need to be addressed in future elections. Nevertheless, kudos to INEC to job well done”.
