Don’t shift the elections again, Parties warn INEC

AHEAD of Saturday’s National Assembly elections, over thirty registered opposition political parties under the aegis, Nigeria Political Summit Group, NPSG Thursday warned the Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega against shifting the polls again. Meanwhile, the National President, Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Mallam Garba Muhammed has expressed confidence in the ability of INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega in conducting a free, fair and credible election. According to NPSG, any further postponement of the elections would expose Nigeria to national and international ridicule, just as it said that it would present the country as unserious one, adding that Nigerians of voting age who are registered voters should come out en-mass to participate during the national Assembly election. Addressing Journalists in Abuja Thursday, the Spokesperson for the group, Alhaji Yusuf Buba, Chairman, Advanced Congress of Democrats, ACD, stressed that even if there were isolated problems in some areas, the electoral body should go ahead with the elections, adding, “If for any reason INEC is not prepared for election in some isolated areas, election should go on as scheduled in all other states of the federation that INEC can manage the election without hitches.” It would be recalled that INEC had last Saturday postponed the National Assembly election citing logistic and non availability of essential voting materials as reason for doing so, even as it rescheduled for Monday, but the date was also cancelled. Speaking Thursday at a one day capacity building workshop for Nigerian Journalists on election reporting and the public Presentation of the book, “Source Materials on Election Reporting for Nigerian Journalists, the NUJ National President, Mallam Garba Muhammed who noted that the explanation by Jega as the basis for shifting the poll was very satisfactory, stressed that it was better for the electoral umpire to shift the election if the outcome of the election will not be credible. By Henry Umoru Courtesy Of: Vanguard