The November 6 governorship election in Anambra State will go ahead as scheduled, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced on Tuesday.
This is coming amid recent tension in Anambra State and other South-East states over the activities of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).
There have been fears that the election may not hold due to the development in the state.
But the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, speaking at an emergency Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security meeting on the way forward for the Anambra election on Tuesday, assured that the election would not be postponed.
Yakubu recalled that at the ICCES last quarterly meeting on September 9, 2021, the committee received briefings and reviewed preparations for the election and that a major issue discussed during the meeting was rising insecurity in the state in particular; the adjoining states in general and how the situation might affect preparations and possibly the conduct of the election.
He said, “Unfortunately, the situation has deteriorated markedly since our last meeting. Many innocent lives have been lost and property destroyed. From the reports we have received, the stated goal of many of the attackers is that the governorship election scheduled for 6 November 2021 must not hold.
“This is worrisome for the commission. We are deeply concerned that specific electoral facilities and materials could once more become targets of attack. Recall that in May this year, our State Office at Awka was attacked and all the non-sensitive materials assembled for the election at the time were destroyed.
“In addition, our store, collation centre and the main office building were either totally or substantially damaged. The Commission also lost several vehicles to be used for the election.
“We appreciate the enormous challenges that the security agencies are presently facing in Anambra State, which entail not only securing the electoral process, but also enforcing law and order generally.
“This is particularly worrisome because the security agencies have also become prime targets of these mindless attacks.
“We will continue to work with the security agencies and in consultation with respected opinion leaders in Anambra State and the National Peace Committee to ensure that these hit-and-run attacks do not derail the electoral process.
“To underscore this determination, the commission is implementing two more activities on the Timetable for the election in the next few days. The register of voters will be presented to political parties in Awka on Thursday 7 October 2021. On the same day, the commission will publish the final list of candidates for the election.”
He further said that the commission had almost fully recovered from attacks on its facilities, as the destroyed buildings have either been completely repaired or are nearing completion and that the commission had fully replaced the materials damaged.
“This rapid recovery has only been possible because this is an off-season election. We have sourced some of these materials such as the 326 electric generators and vehicles destroyed in the attack from neighbouring states,” he said.
Yakubu, meanwhile, noted that if the commission suffers attacks on vital materials and facilities, the ongoing preparations would be adversely affected.
Noting that INEC is particularly concerned about the safety of voters and its staff as well as security officials, who have become the targets of the attacks, Yakubu said.
“Thousands of young Nigerians that we intend to deploy for the election, most of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and university students, need to be reassured of their personal safety.”