Representatives of traditional institutions, politicians, government and coalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) in Kogi Central have decried the few number of polling units allotted to the zone by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in their latest release of additional polling units nationwide.
The coalition, Strategic Advocacy Group for the Expansion of Polling Units in Kogi Central, met severally within the last one week since the release to review the situation.
In the last meeting of the group at the Hiltop Suite in Okene on Tuesday, the team took several decisions and position, which includes alerting the INEC about the gaps, the intricacies and lopsidedness in the compilation and evaluation of the data that gave birth to the final results.
The group argued that though INEC is not entirely to be blamed for the inconsistency registered in the release, but the commission is however under obligation to give attention and meaning to agitations of every Nigerians, particularly in a multi-sectorial political state like Kogi. It is believed that INEC should look at critical issues of rural inhabitants, locations and access to information and proximity to polling points in the remote areas of the State before taken a such sensitive decision.
The group specifically frowned at the huge gaps between the three major ethnics in the state where the nine local government areas in Kogi East has a total of 506 additional polling units over that of the remaining twelve local government areas which is about 453 put-together.
Dekina local government alone has a total additional 135 polling units which is far above the total polling units in the Central part of the State.
Furthermore, the group opined that the upcoming Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise scheduled for June 28 across the country should be utilized by both the people and the INEC to correct these anomalies.
Speaking with the Chairman of the advocacy group, Mohammed Bougei Attah said that the development is not only worrisome but that it undermines the position of the people of Kogi Central politically and economically.
Finally, he reiterated that though INEC is not to be blamed, but it is within the Commission’s mandate to review the current situation and do a more thorough job at the zones.
Attah, however, advocated for more political will on the part of the government, the commission and the political elites to ensure these inconsistencies are reviewed, reversed or corrected to the benefit of all citizens of the state.
