Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Nasarawa state, Dr Uthman Ajidagba has averred that politicians planning to snatch ballot boxes during the forthcoming 2023 general elections were wasting their time.
He said that, rather than planning to snatch ballot boxes, politicians should concentrate on how they could convince the electorates to gain their votes as the such an act will have no impact on the voting process, going by the new electoral act.
Ajidagba made the declaration yesterday while playing host to the leadership of the Correspondent Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Nasarawa state council, who paid him a courtesy visit in Lafia, yesterday.
He called on Journalists in the state of Nasarawa state to engage in massive sensitisation of residents against vote buying during the 2023 general elections.
He also called for sustained partnership with the media towards ensuring mass sensitisation of members of the public.
“The 2023 election is very crucial and because of the circumstances of the election process, INEC is working hard to give the nation a credible, fair, inclusive and unbiased election”
“Please as partners, there is a need to also scale up the sensitization of the youth for them to Shun violence, as a bullet does not recognise anybody, tribe or position”.
He pointed out that the electronic transfer of results and other innovations brought into the system by the Commission were preparing the ground for electronic voting and other considerations in future elections, calling on those, who participated in the recently concluded Continuous Voter Registration exercise to collect their PVCs.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Correspondents’ Chapel of NUJ, Comrade Isaac Ukpoju, said the Chapel leadership was in his office to familiarise himself with the commission and also seek partnership, assuring the commission of needed publicity for adequate education of the general public.
