Commissioner Herps On Sustained Voter Education

The Niger State Commissioner for Investment, Dr Mustapha Jibrin, says that sustained voter education is critical in addressing voters apathy during electioneering process.
Jibrin said this in an interview with newsmen at the weekend shortly after casting his vote for the chairmanship and councilorship election at Tilappia Polling Unit in Chanchaga Local Government Area of
the state.
The Niger State Independent Electoral Commission (NSIEC) is conducting Local Government chairmanship and councilors elections across the 25 local government areas of the state.
He explained that voter education was critical in mobilising the electorate, especially those in rural communities to be able to make informed decisions and also participate actively in the electoral process.
Jibrin who linked the voter apathy in the chairmanship election to lack of proper sensitisation and lack of adequate awareness by the state SIEC and political parties, called for sustained voter education to address the problem.
“Stakeholders such as political parties, traditional ruler’s, religious institutions and NSIEC need to do more in the future by educating the electorate on the importance of exercise the franchise.

” People should not only attach importance to the governorship and presidential election, they should take the council election with all seriousness because the local government is more closer to them.
“They should draw people’s attention to the fact that there is no election that is not important, every election is very important since it has to do with people choosing their representatives,” he said.
He however commended the security personnel for ensuring peaceful process and appealed to those losers to accept defeat when election results were announced.