….As Ondo REC rolls out Preparations at Media Engagement.
The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Ondo State, Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola, has held a media engagement with professionals, declaring that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, preparations for the November 16, 2024 governorship election in the state are going on well as stipulated in the election timetable.
The REC during the media engagement held at the commission State Headquarters in Akure at the weekend, disclosed that a large percentage of the non-sensitive election materials required for the governorship election have been received from the INEC Headquarters, Abuja and deployed to the 18 Local Government Offices in the state.
Earlier, the Ondo State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Prince Leke Adegbite had pledged the commitment of the media for the successful conduct of the gubernatorial election.
Adegbite advocated regular media engagements before, during and after the election to prevent misinformation, disinformation and spread of fake news on the election.
Babalola said the commission was working round the clock to ensure safe storage and timely distribution of the materials on the eve of the election.
She said the commission would soon commence distribution of Permanent Voter Card (PVC), noting that Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) which is a key innovation aimed at enhancing the credibility of the exercise would be deployed to the three thousand nine hundred and thirty-three (3,933) Polling units in the state for voter accreditation.
The Commissioner explained that Recruitment and Training of Ad-hoc Staff had been done in line with the commission’s preparations.
“Electoral Materials, I am pleased to inform you that a large percentage of the non-sensitive election materials required for the election have been received and deployed to the 18 Local Government Offices, where they are batched to RAs and Pus levels.
“We are working closely with the relevant security agencies and stakeholders to ensure safe storage and timely distribution of these materials on the eve of election.
“Recruitment and Training of Ad-hoc Staff; The Portal for the recruitment of ad-hoc staff for the election has been closed and presently we are at the stage of harvesting those who applied as ad-hoc election officials for the purpose of inviting the qualified ones for training. Our focus during recruitment has been on competence, neutrality, and professionalism.
“The NYSC who are going to form the major crop of poll officials to be used in the election have been subjected to 13 weeks of root-training before the major Electoral Institute Training of Election Officials.
“In the same vein, while a series of capacity-building workshops have been conducted for our staff, lots of capacity enhancement training and workshops are still ongoing. This is aimed at aiding the staff of the Commission in the state to discharge their duties professionally.
“Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), The deployment of BVAS is a key innovation aimed at enhancing the credibility of the electoral process. May I state categorically that BVAS shall be deployed in all Three thousand nine hundred and thirty-three (3,933) Polling units in the state for voter accreditation, ensuring that only registered voters with valid PVCs are allowed to vote. This system will also transmit polling unit results directly to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), enabling greater transparency and real-time access to election results by the public.
“INEC Ondo state has taken custody of sufficient numbers of BVAS for the purpose of the election, and we are confident in its reliability for the governorship election.
“Registration Area Technical Support Staff (RATECH) will be deployed to all Registration Areas (RAs) to provide technical assistance in case of any issue with the functioning of the BVAS.
Voter Education and Public Awareness,” Babalola said.
“As we await the commencement of the distribution of Permanent Voter Card (PVC), from the CVR exercise we urge all registered voters in the previous registration exercise who are yet to collect their PVCs to do so, as this process is ongoing at our LGA offices. We shall simplify the collection process and establish PVC collection centers in all Registration Areas (RA) and in the Local government areas for ease of access,” the REC explained.
