Janet Samuel, Abuja
The Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has ordered the deployment of more voter registration machines to some of the registration centres in Edo, in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) in the state.
Yakubu gave the directive on Thursday in Benin, when he visited some of the registration centres in the state to access the ongoing executive.
Yakubu, who commended the mass turnout of the prospective registrants at different centres in the state, assured them that INEC would do everything possible to make the process seamless.
Speaking at the registration centre located Western Boys Secondary School, Ward 2, Ikpoba Okha LGA, Yakubu directed that two additional machines, Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), should be mobilised to the centre.
“The most important thing is for us to expedite the process. So what we have decided now is that tomorrow there will be two additional machines to this centre, to make it five machines.
“There are two queues. One is for registration, the other one is for transfer and collection of cards. So they are going to reorganise the queues. But I’ve seen the numbers here, and one of the solutions is to increase the number of machines to this centre,” he said.
Also at the INEC Ikpoba Okha LGA Office, Yakubu directed that additional registration machines should be deployed to the centre. He also monitored the exercise at Eweka Primary School in Use Ward 3, Egor LGA.
Yakubu, however, warned staff of the commission against demanding for money before registering anybody who presented himself or herself for the exercise.
On observation that some political parties were trying to hijack the exercises in their favour of their supporters, Yakubu said that the commission would be meeting with the state commissioner of Police and other security agencies in the state to address the concern.
“My message consistently is that all the staff engaged in the registration, whether they are ad hoc staff or regular staff, should know that no one should collect money from any Nigerian who comes to register or transfer or request for replacement of cards.
“This is a service paid for by the federal government of Nigeria and it must be respected. Where we catch any staff involved in this act, that staff will be dealt with, whether the staff is regular staff or ad hoc staff,” Yakubu said.
Earlier, some of the prospective registrants on the queue who commended INEC for the exercise, urged the commission to mobilise more registration machine to fast track the registration process.
Mrs Sliver Angela and Mr Oluwasegun Oketoki at the registration centre located at INEC Ikpoba Okha LGA Office, who said they came out as early as 5am to register, called for deployment of more machines to the centre
Mrs Blessings Uwagwe at Eweka Primary School, also complained about the delay in the process and the need for more machines to be deployed as more people are coming out to register.
Meanwhile, an INEC ad hoc Staff, Mr Oladele Emmanuel, an NYSC corps member deployed for the registration exercise at the centre said no challenge with the functionality of the registration machines.
