The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, assured the people of Edo State on Thursday that the upcoming governorship election scheduled for September 21 will proceed despite recent damage to the commission’s office.
Last Friday, heavy downpours in Edo State caused flooding that severely damaged the INEC building, including the enrollment machines for the Continuous Voters Registration and the ICT Department. Vehicles were also submerged in the flood.
To ensure the CVR could begin on Monday across the 192 wards in the state, the commission secured enrollment machines from Delta and Bayelsa states and relocated to the Ikpoba Okha office.
While inspecting the damage, Prof. Yakubu stated that the affected infrastructure would be repaired or replaced and that equipment would be borrowed from neighboring states to ensure the exercise proceeds smoothly.
“Our visit here is to ensure that we fix whatever we need to fix because of the election. We have three months and three weeks to the election and that is why we came here to inspect what happened to our facility last week Friday, so there is no immediate plan to relocate,” Yakubu said. “We believe we can fix the damage before the election and it is better to conduct the election in our own facilities rather than going to rent any facility outside. Before the last governorship election in Edo, we took measures to deliver a good election and for three years since the last governorship election, we have had no issues but this is an act of God.”
When asked about the cost of the damage, Yakubu said, “It is very difficult to quantify now. Three critical Directors responsible for the voters registry, our estate, works and transport and ICT will stay behind, do the assessment, and advise the commission.”
Yakubu assured Edo voters that the elections would proceed as scheduled and that INEC would recover from the incident. He emphasized that, being off-cycle elections, equipment from neighboring states could be deployed if necessary.
Regarding the possibility of extending the CVR period, Yakubu noted that the commission would decide as the situation evolves.
Earlier, Resident Electoral Commissioner Dr. Anugbum Onuoha described the flood as a “blessing in disguise,” stating that it has better prepared them for the upcoming election.
