By Tom Zaneni
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Wednesday, urged accredited election-observer organisations to adhere to the guidelines for election observation in the forthcoming off-season governorship polls in Edo and Ondo States.
The commission warned that it would withdraw the accreditation of any group that breached the code of conduct for election observers.
INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of Election and Party Monitoring Committee, Mr Sam Olumekun, gave the warning at a pre-election workshop organised by the commission for accredited election-observer groups in Abuja.
Already, the electoral umpire has accredited 134 election observer-groups that met its requirements, out of the 153 civil society organisations that applied for accreditation.
The 134 accredited groups are made up of 124 domestic and 10 international organisations.
These include gender-based, disability-focused, faith-based, and other groups with relevant election-observation experiences.
The gubernatorial poll in Edo State will be conducted on September 21 while that of Ondo will take place on November 16, 2024.
Olumekun, who chaired the event, said that the integrity of the electoral process must be safeguarded at all stages, urging the accredited organisations to exhibit high standards and submit credible reports to the commission.
According to him, INEC reserves the right to revoke the accreditation of any group that violates the code of conduct outlined for election observation.
He noted that while some organisations had demonstrated honesty and hard work to add value to the electoral process, others had exhibited laxity.
The INEC official said, “”I must bring to your attention that your accreditation may be withdrawn at any stage of the election process if it is found that your organisation is violating the Code of Conduct for observers, as outlined in the Guidelines for Election Observation available on the INEC website.
“Additionally, please be reminded that the accreditation of your organisation to observe the elections does not impose any financial obligations on the Commission.
“Another significant issue concerning election observation that has troubled the Commission is the matter of integrity.
“While many observer-groups in the country are trustworthy, honest, objective, hardworking, and credible, significantly contributing to the deepening of democracy and the electoral process in Nigeria over the years, some groups continue to exhibit laxity. These groups display a disregard for the integrity of the entire election observation process.”
He stated that the workshop was important because election observers play a crucial role in the balloting process, and it was only necessary that they were adequately prepared for the poll in the two states.
He stressed the need for the observers to be familiarized with the new online processes for uploading field data, functionality of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), and the overall election-day procedures.
“The training aims to enhance the observers’ understanding and adherence to the election guidelines, thereby contributing to a transparent and credible electoral process.
“As accredited observer groups, you are granted access to observe all election processes as outlined in the Commission’s Reviewed Regulations and Guidelines for the conduct of elections, available on the INEC website (www.inecnigeria.org).
“Your organisation must obtain an access code (Accreditation Number) and the number of field observers to be deployed from the Election and Party Monitoring (EPM) Department. This will enable you to process the online submission of your field observers on a Local Government Area (LGA) basis by completing the required forms online.
“You are required to upload the names and passport photographs of your field observers so that the Commission can issue them Identity Cards,” Olumekun added.
