INEC boss meets security chiefs ahead of Ondo poll

Says electing next governor lies with electorate, not commission

The National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, yesterday, met with heads of security agencies in Ondo State to brainstorm on how to ensure and achieve seamless governorship election in the state.

In a meeting with the stakeholders, under the aegis of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES), Yakubu said that the incidences that could manifest in the build-up to the November 16, 2024 governorship poll had been adequately reviewed.

The INEC Chairman, after the closed-door meeting with the heads of the security agencies, such as the police, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS), among others, assured residents of the state of a hitch-free electoral process.

Yakubu, who admonished politicians to play by the rules, stressed that INEC is not a political party hence, the responsibility of electing the next governor of the state lies with the people.

He said: “We can’t succeed in delivering electoral activities and the elections unless the environment is secured for us.

“This is going to be the third governorship election conducted by the current commission in Ondo State. I was here in 2016 for the same purpose; I was here in 2020 for the governorship election; and by God’s grace, we’ll be here again in November 2024 for yet another governorship election.

“I want to assure registered voters in Ondo State that they should continue to troop out in their numbers to register and come out and collect their PVCs.”
On his part, Commissioner for Police (CP) in the state, Abayomi Oladipupo, revealed that the deployment of security personnel for the election had already been done.

According to him, the synergy between the sister-security agencies in the state is top-notch, hence the assurance of a smooth process.