The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has said that he is satisfy with the machines deployed for the forthcoming election in Ondo state.
Mamood made the assertion while visiting some units and wards in three local governments areas of the state in Akure South, Idanre, and Ondo East.
He commented on the commission’s readiness and preparations for the upcoming Ondo State governorship election.
He highlighted the importance of the mock accreditation exercise in testing the functionality of accreditation machines. He said that the commission cannot afford to take any chance or leaving it for granted
” we can’t take that for granted, and that is why, as part of the preparations, we decided to do a mock to further test the functionality of the machines,” Professor Yakubu said.
“I’m happy we have visited two local governments, and this is the third one. We have visited quite a number, almost half of the locations where we are conducting the mock accreditation.”
Professor Yakubu expressed satisfaction with the performance of the machines, noting, “So far, as you have seen, we have had no failure in accreditation. Many of the voters were accredited using facial recognition rather than fingerprint.”
He also made an unplanned visit to a local government office to assess the readiness of Electoral Officers (EOs). “It’s an impromptu visit to see the level of readiness of the EOs, and as you can see, just like Akure North yesterday and Akure South, they are also ready. They are waiting for the sensitive materials to complete the patching, and the sensitive materials will arrive on Thursday,” he added. “So far, so good. We are happy with the level of preparations for the election.”
When asked for assurance to voters ahead of the governorship election, Professor Yakubu responded, “The assurance is that, as we have been assured by the EOs and as we have seen the level of preparations made, we will ensure that all polling units open on time so that voters will not come and wait for INEC officials and materials. Having tested the integrity of the machines, it’s not just about deploying early but also accrediting early.”
“My assurance to voters is that, as far as INEC is concerned, in this multi-stakeholder activity called election, you can see the level of preparation,” he continued. “That’s why we left our offices in Abuja to come to the state. We are not stopping at the state headquarters in Akure but are also visiting local government offices, including some of the polling units where mock accreditation is taking place and where the election will be held on Saturday next week.”
Addressing political parties, Professor Yakubu appealed, “My message, my appeal to political parties always, is that we should maintain the peace that exists in the state. We are doing our best as the electoral commission, and others should also do their best, particularly the political parties and the candidates.”
He later advised the Politicians to allow peace reign in the state before during and after the election
, “I once again appeal to political parties, candidates, and their supporters to ensure that we maintain the peace that will enable us to deploy in good time, conclude the process in good time, and announce whoever the people of Ondo State have chosen as their governor on Saturday.”
