The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has started distributing Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and other sensitive election materials to local areas before Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly elections. The sensitive materials have been deposited at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); and will be retrieved for use at the polls. Nigerians will elect new leaders who will take over the country’s affairs for four years.
INEC has begun the distribution of the election materials in Southern Nigeria, including South East and South-South. The distribution of sensitive election materials to the local government offices across the state has also begun in Edo State. The electoral body ensures that the materials get to the right places on time.
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has confirmed that over 200,000 corps members would serve as ad-hoc staff at the presidential and National Assembly elections. To ensure the safety of corps members while carrying out their duties as temporary election workers, the NYSC warned them to refrain from accepting bribes — the director general of the NYSC, Brig.-Gen. Yusha’u Ahmed assured corps members that the elections would be safe for them. The NYSC launched a distress call centre (DCC) for corps members to call when threatened. The NYSC will discover the caller’s problem and whereabouts and notify security personnel.
INEC and NYSC are to ensure that the elections are peaceful, free and fair conduct of the election and that the voters exercise their franchise without fear or intimidation. Distributing election materials to local areas is crucial to ensure everything is intact for the polls on Saturday. The safety of corps members and other election workers is also a top priority, and the NYSC has taken measures to ensure their safety while carrying out their duties.
