BENIN CITY- THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Edo State, said a total of 52, 013 persons registered for the just concluded Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise that took place between the Months of June 2021and January 2022 in the state while 32, 465 were invalidated owing to double registrations.
The Head of Department, Voter Education and Publicity of INEC, Mr. Timidi Wariowei, made the disclosure yesterday during a Media and Stakeholders Summit, tagged :Roadmap to Credible, Transparent and Peaceful Election in Edo, organized by Edo State Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists.
He said the invalid registrations were discovered after been subjected to Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) where it was discovered that some individuals registered twice.
Wariowei revealed the figure was one of the least compared to other states where similar CVR was done.
Wariowei stated further that INEC through its determine efforts to making elections seamless in the state has created more polling units, increasing it from 2,627 to 4,519.
He appealed to Journalists in the state to cooperate with the commission towards ensuring peaceful and credible elections in the state, just as he advised them to desist from the temptation of announcing election results while on election monitoring duty.
Wariowei, said Journalists can quote a figure being displayed by INEC officials at the polling units but cannot declare any candidates winner noting that it is the sole responsibility of INEC to do that.
Speaking also, the state Commissioner of Police, CP Abutu Yaro, represented by DSP, Head of Operations of the Command, James Chu, said citizens of the state must check their excesses as they plan towards the forthcoming elections adding that the country belongs us and thus must not set it on fire by their actions.
Earlier, the state chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Festus Alenkhe urged Journalists to be guided by the Electoral Acts and avoid any acts that will jeopardize the country.
He also called on the law enforcement agencies to see Journalists as partners in progress and should not brutalize them while doing their job as the union has an internal mechanism in handling any Journalists that is found wanting.
