The Independent National Electoral Commission has dismissed rumours that it plans to postpone the 2023 general elections billed got February 25.
The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said this on Tuesday afternoon, while delivering a lecture at Chatham House on the topic ‘Nigeria’s 2023 Elections: Preparations and Priorities for Electoral Integrity and Inclusion
He said, “We believe that by forthrightly sharing our experiences and discussing the challenges openly, we can surmount the challenges and ensure that our elections in Nigeria continue to get better.
“May I, on this note, once again reiterate our position that the commission is not contemplating, let alone planning, to postpone the 2023 general election. We are going ahead to conduct the election as scheduled.”
On the attacks of recent attacks on INEC facilities across the country, Yakubu lamented the damages the attack have created.
He, however, stated that such won’t prevent the election from holding while hoping that the security agencies get the situation under control.
“The implication of the attacks is that we have to rebuild facilities and replace materials. The Commission and the security agencies have increased their presence in some of these locations,” the INEC boss said.
“The last attacks actually happened on Sunday last week but because of the cooperation between the military and the electoral commission, we’re able to respond and the damage was limited to just a section of the building in a local government office.”
“In December last year, the National Assembly held a public hearing on these attacks and we hope that authorities have these attacks under control and the response by the security agencies is more coordinated.
“But in spite of these attacks, we’ll rebuild facilities. We’ll replace damaged or lost items. The election will continue,” he said.