By Jubril Bada

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has assured the readiness of the commission to ensure polling units open promptly to avoid delays in voting.

To this end, he said the logistics for the election have been put in place to achieve this goal.

The INEC chairman stated this while speaking with journalists on his arrival at the Ondo State Airport on Monday during a working visit to meet with relevant stakeholders and assess the level of readiness for the election.

Yakubu, who explained that the commission has learned many lessons from the last Edo governorship election and previous elections on logistics and result management, noted that the commission will observe a mock accreditation exercise, which will take place in 16 polling units across six local governments in each of the three senatorial districts of the state on Friday.

He, however, assured the electorate in the state of significant improvements in these two areas of logistics and result management for the election.

Other plans include a meeting with relevant stakeholders on Thursday, and the National Peace Committee’s meeting with stakeholders on Friday to sign a National Peace Accord.

“So, we are here basically to look at what is happening, the good work that the state office has done. We are going to meet with the stakeholders, including political parties, civil society organisations, the media, security agencies, and we are also going to meet with our staff to assess our readiness. We will be here for a few days.

“One of the activities we are also going to observe is the mock accreditation of voters, which will take place in 16 polling units across six local government areas in the three senatorial zones of the state.

“In addition to other activities, we are also going to meet with the stakeholders on Thursday, and the following day, the National Peace Committee will also invite all the stakeholders for the signing of the National Peace Accord,” he stated.

The INEC boss also commissioned the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) storage facility for the conduct of the Ondo State governorship election scheduled for 16th November.