The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that it was reviewing the conduct of the 2019 general election in Rivers State as a springboard for finding more effective strategies for doing better job in the upcoming elections in Bayelsa and Kogi in November, Ondo, Edo and Anambra in 2021, Ekiti and Osun in 2022, and the 2023 polls.
The commission said that the review was designed to further deepen democracy while stabilising the polity and building the confidence of Nigerians in the political process.
Speaking while declaring open the 2019 Post-Election Review Roundtable in Port Harcourt, INEC National Commissioner, Bayelsa, Edo and Rivers States, Barrister May Agbamuche-Mbu said that the event was organised to carefully examine the conduct of the commission during the Presidential and National Assembly elections on February 23 and the Governorship and State Houses of Assembly Elections on March 9, with a view to drawing from lessons learnt in the process.
Agbamuche-Mbu emphasized that the review would x-ray the planning, organisation, general preparedness, impact of voter education and publicity, impact of the commission’s interactions with stakeholders and the overall impact of the legal framework in the successful conduct of the 2019 general election.
She noted that the efforts of the commission’s staff ensured the huge success of the election process, and thanked them for their contributions, professionalism, dedication and commitment towards the successful conclusion of the 2019 general election.
The national commissioner urged participants to identify flaws, weaknesses and strengths observed during the 2019 general election, to enable the commission find ways of limiting flaws and weaknesses in subsequent elections while consolidating on the strengths as INEC prepares for the proposed legislative and procedural reforms going forward.
She noted with sadness the election-related violence and killings that permeated in some parts of the affected states, and paid tributes to those who lost their lives during the course of the elections.
Agbamuche-Mbu regretted the challenges which led to the suspension of the electoral process in Rivers State, adding that the INEC leadership has never wavered in its commitment to conduct free, fair, credible and peaceful elections.
She restated the commitment of the commission to conduct credible elections in Bayelsa and Kogi states in November, and hoped that recommendations from the review would better impact the successful conduct of elections in the two states, and others afterwards.
Susan Serekara-Nwikhana
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