The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it will make the 2019 ballot papers voter friendly to enable it conduct a free, fair and credible election.
INEC National Electoral Commissioner in charge of Anambra, Enugu and Benue, Mr. Festus Okoye, disclosed this while addressing journalists in Enugu on Monday.
He said the commission would roll out massive voter education to educate the electorate on how to vote for their candidates in the 2019 elections, calling on political parties to work with the Commission in educating the masses to vote for their candidates, stressing that voter education should not be left to the Commission alone.
The Electoral Commissioner also revealed that INEC was consulting with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) on the prosecution of electoral offenders, as the commission lacked the capacity to prosecute the numerous electoral offenders.
“We lack the capacity to prosecute those that are involved in multiple registrations, so we are discussing with the NBA for collaboration.”
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He restated the commission’s position on Zamfara, noting that only an order from a court of competent jurisdiction could change INEC’s stand on the state.
“For now there is no such order from any court,” he said.
Bemoaning what he termed multiple and conflicting court orders, Okoye pointed out that such was not healthy for the country’s electoral process.
“Courts should be circumspect in granting orders and should grant orders that can be obeyed,” he stressed.
He told journalists that the commission would track all vehicles conveying sensitive materials in the coming elections and plot e-collection of results adding, “this does not mean that we will abandon all forms used for elections.”
He said if the INEC bill before the National Assembly was passed, the commission would then deploy information communications technology in the conduct of elections in the country.
