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2023: INEC Targets 200,000 Electronic Voting Machines
With less than two years to the 2023 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has proposed to buy about 200,000 electronic voting machines to cater for the 176,846 Polling Units in the country.
As such, the agency’s Electronic Voting Implementation Committee has been reconstituted and has commenced work.
The INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Barrister Festus Okoye, said yesterday that a team of INEC’s in-house engineers were currently evaluating proposals submitted by 49 companies, both local and foreign, for the supply of the machines.
The commission said its engineering team would consider factors such as the machines’ ruggedness and design before short-listing any of the companies.
Okoye said, “As of today, we have 176,846 Polling Units in the country, and each polling unit must be serviced by at least one electronic voting machine. The commission must also acquire redundancies or backups.
“The decision on the number to acquire will be taken by the commission the moment a decision on the machines is taken and the constitutive legal framework amended to accommodate additional use of technology in the electoral process. But we are looking at and proposing around 200,000 machines.”
Asked how many companies had been invited to present supply proposals, Okoye said, “The commission has not invited and short-listed any company for the purpose of supplying the electronic voting machines.
“A total of 49 companies were invited for a Request for Information demonstration. Our in-house engineers are evaluating all the submissions made during the demonstration and will advise the commission on issues of design and ruggedness (fit for purpose),” he added.
The commission stated that companies that came for the RFI demonstration were from Nigeria, the Netherlands, China, the United States, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and India.
“At the appropriate time, the short-listing and selection of companies that may supply or fabricate the electronic voting machines will be subjected to due process requirements and the Procurement Act. As of today, no decision has been taken relating to the manufacturers or suppliers,” Okoye said.
Asked the reason for the delay in short-listing the successful companies, the INEC commissioner cited factors such as the Covid-19 pandemic, expansion of voter access to Polling Units, and the constitutive legal instrument backing up the deployment of e-voting machines in the electoral process.
Okoye said the resumption of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise had taken a lot of the commission’s attention, adding that an Electronic Voting Implementation Committee had been reconstituted and had commenced work.
“A new timeline is being considered for the implementation of the project,” Okoye added.
The INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, had said during the 2021 budget defence before the House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters on November 4, 2020, that the commission would deploy the electronic voting machines “very soon,” possibly beginning with the Anambra governorship poll scheduled to hold in November this year.
However, the commission has been seeking an amendment of the legal framework that would enable electronic voting, noting that it remained committed to introducing electronic voting machines in the electoral process to replace the manual system that had put the commission under heavy logistics burden, including the printing of electoral papers and hiring of thousands of ad hoc staff, among others.
Although there had been divided opinions on whether Nigeria was ripe for electronic voting, Yakubu said at the inauguration of the 1999 Constitution Review Committee of the House of Representatives in October, 2020, that elections in the country were “too manual, expensive, cumbersome and archaic.”
He added that “the encumbrance of the deployment of full technology in elections should be removed.”
Yakubu also recently said at a public hearing on the Electoral Offences Commission (Establishment) Bill sponsored by Senator Abubakar Kyari that the timetable for the 2023 general election would be released in November, 2021.
Meanwhile, ahead of the Anambra State governorship election slated for November 6, INEC said it had begun repairing its destroyed facilities in the state, and replacing some of its non-sensitive materials affected by the destructions.
Gunmen had in the past few months launched attacks on INEC and other government facilities, particularly in the South-East.
The gunmen burnt the INEC office in Anambra State on May 23.
During the attack, the commission stated that it lost its Collation Centre, seven utility vehicles, and 50 per cent of all non-sensitive materials.
However, INEC said it had started rebuilding its office to enable it to conduct the governorship election taking place in the state in less than five months from now.
Okoye, said, “The security situation in the country is fluid. The commission, in conjunction with the security agencies, will continue to evaluate the security situation of the country.
“We have started the process of rebuilding our burnt structures and facilities in Anambra State. We are also replacing some of the non-sensitive materials destroyed during the attack on the commission’s State Headquarters Office on May 23, 2021.
“Also, some of the communities have offered to rebuild or are already rebuilding some of our offices burnt or vandalised during the #EndSARS protest. We are evaluating and auditing the rest of the facilities and making projections relating to the cost for their repairs and or replacement.”
Asked if there would be Continuous Voter Registration in areas in the South-East where INEC offices had been burnt, Okoye said the commission would start the CVR with online registration, which he said would commence on June 28, after which the commission would begin physical registration in the state and local government offices on July 19.
In preparation for the online voter registration, the commission said it had acquired and launched the Voter Enrolment Device, noting that registrants with no legal disability would start their registration online and complete it at the designated registration centres, where their biometrics would be captured.
On whether the CVR would also hold in insurgency-ravaged areas in the North, Okoye said, “We have adopted a gradual and graduated approach to the challenges.”
“We will work with the stakeholders and the security agencies in all parts of the country to protect our personnel and equipment. We are conscious of the expectations of the Nigerian people and will work round the clock for the success of the exercise,” he added.
On general preparations for the 2023 elections, INEC said it had worked “hard” on its processes and procedures and “striving to build a democratic and independent institution.”
The commission also urged political parties to become more democratic and inclusive.
“The bulk of the matters in court relates to challenges with the organisation and practices of the different political parties. We must strive to clean up the party process and hold them to the same standards like the commission,” Okoye said.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
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RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.