According to report, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has not released the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS), an electronic gadget designed to read Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and authenticate voters to any of the states in the South-East region.
Enugu, Ebonyi, Anambra, Abia, and Imo are the five impacted states.
During a meeting with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Fact-Finding Mission for Nigerian Elections in Enugu, INEC Administration Secretary in Enugu, Mr Chidi Nwafor, revealed that the commission had received non-sensitive materials with the exception of the BVAS, which he said could be linked to the activities of unknown gunmen.
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He recalls gunmen attacking and torching the commission’s offices in Enugu and other regions of the South-East.
Nwafor revealed that the commission still lacked vehicles, noting that the national quarters had not replaced them since the attack on the commission’s offices in Enugu, when numerous vehicles were burned.
He said “As we speak, our database has been cleaned ahead of elections against any errors and virus. We have vehicle issues – after attack on our office, our vehicles have been depleted and the national quarters are aware of it.”
He expressed confidence that early logistics movement and time will overcome most of the commission’s previous election difficulties, mentioning the governorship elections in Osun and Ekiti as examples.
Earlier, the ECOWAS Fact-Finding Mission for Nigerian Elections, chaired by Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, former Chairman of Ghana’s Electoral Commission, stated that the 2023 general elections in Nigeria were critical to the African continent and beyond.
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Afari-Gyan, who earlier met with representatives of civil society organizations, media practitioners, political parties, and the leadership of the Inter-party Advisory Council (IPAC) on Tuesday, stated that the success of any election is dependent on the participation of all stakeholders.
As a result, he urged everyone to play their part in achieving democratic expectations, which would usher in peaceful, credible, free, and fair elections.
Mr Mohammed Konnel, Sierra Leone’s Chief Electoral Commissioner; Dr Remi Ajibewa, ECOWAS Director of Political Affairs; and Dr Onye Orukuwa, Head of Peace and Mediation Unit, were among the ECOWAS delegation members.
ASP Nuru Hamidu, Head of ECOWAS Security, and Mr Abu Turay, ECOWAS Election Technical Expert, were also present.
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