The Chief Press Secretary to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Rotimi Oyekanmi, on Wednesday said the outcome of the August 16 by-elections showed that the commission is determined to conduct credible, free and fair elections despite misinformation about its activities.
Oyekanmi, while speaking about the skepticism expressed by some Nigerians about the electoral process, said, “INEC is very concerned and determined” about credible, free and fair elections.
“I think the problem is a lot of misinformation going on about how the commission conducts elections,” he said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief.
He explained that politicians often misrepresented the commission’s work depending on the results of elections.
“It points to the unfortunate idea when politicians go into elections with the sole aim of winning, and you find that when they win elections they praise the commission to high heavens, or when they lose elections, they accuse the commission of rigging the election.
“The bye-election that we just conducted and the outcome of the bye-election in 16 constituencies show that the commission is doing its best to ensure free and fair election,” he explained.
According to him, the credibility of the process has made elections more competitive across the country.
“Now elections have become more competitive because we ensure that the process is free and fair,” he said.
He urged citizens to disregard false information and participate actively in the process.
“We work hard to ensure that the sanctity of the vote is protected, to assure them they should please register, not just register, ensure that they get their Permanent Voter Card (PVC) and participate in elections as we move along,” Oyekanmi added.
The elections were held in 13 states across Nigeria are voting in polls to elect new representatives in the Senate, House of Representatives, and state houses of assembly.
The affected states are Jigawa, Edo, Ogun, Oyo, Adamawa, Anambra, Kaduna, Kano, Taraba, Kogi, Niger, Enugu, and Zamfara.
The elections involved two senatorial districts in Anambra and Edo states, five federal constituencies in Edo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Ogun, and Oyo states, and nine state constituencies in Adamawa, Anambra, Kaduna, Kano, Kogi, Niger, Taraba, and Zamfara states.
Similarly, the court-ordered re-run election in Enugu South 1 State Constituency of Anambra State and the Ghari/Tsanyawa State Constituency of Kano State were held simultaneously with the by-elections.
