The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, yesterday endorsed last weekend’s trial run on the card readers and resolved to use the device for the forthcoming general elections.
The INEC stance nonetheless, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governors were last night locked in a meeting in Lagos where they were articulating strong objections to the use of the device.
INEC OFFICIAL CHECKING THE THUMB OF A PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED VOTER, DURING THE TESTING OF SMART CARD READER AT HORARE WARD AND JOGEL POLLING UNIT IN JAMA,ARE LGA OF BAUCHI STATE ON SATURDAY.
The PDP governors, who had erstwhile deputy national chairman of the party, Chief Olabode George and other stalwarts in attendance at the meeting, Vanguard learnt, were also raising issues on the term of INEC chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega.
Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, who was present, canvassed at the beginning of the meeting that Jega should leave office three months to the end of his tenure in accordance with public service rules.
The endorsement of the card reader was given at a meeting of the 12 national commissioners of the commission at INEC headquarters in Abuja. The meeting was presided over by INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega.
Yesterday’s meeting came ahead of further preparatory meetings with the 37 Resident Electoral Commissioners, RECs, who are in charge of the 36 states of the federation and Abuja.
The use of the card reader had divided the political class with the two major political parties taking divergent positions on the device. INEC claims the cards would stop multiple voting by ensuring that only possessors of the Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs, can vote at voting points where the PVCs are programmed to.
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had following last Saturday’s trial run, expressed reservations, noting difficulties in the accreditation through the failure of the biometric confirmation among some voters.
The All Progressives Congress, APC, on its part said it was satisfied with the device and urged the commission to go ahead with the use of the card readers.
The issue, Vanguard learnt, came up at the meeting of the national commissioners and at the end it was resolved that INEC should forge ahead with the use of the device.
A source at the commission, who pleaded anonymity, told Vanguard that “the National Commissioners have decided to stick with the card reader following the huge success the machine recorded during the field test in some 12 states across the country last Saturday.”
A source equally said that the prospects of going back was now unthinkable as the commission had now crossed the bridge having also collected the Temporary Voter Cards from registered voters.
