The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suffered extensive damage after some of its local government offices and facilities were vandalised during the violence recorded in parts of the country.
INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
He confirmed that the vandalisation of properties also affected areas where pending bye-elections were scheduled to hold.
Okoye explained that the electoral body held a meeting on Thursday where it further reviewed the situation.
Following the destruction of properties, he said the commission noted the importance of consulting all the critical stakeholders in the electoral process before deciding on a definite date for the conduct of the bye-elections.
“Consequently, the Commission will consult with political parties and civil society organisations on Tuesday 10th November 2020 and then with the media and Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) on Wednesday 11th November 2020.
“The Commission will thereafter meet again with the Resident Electoral Commissioners on Thursday, 12th November 2020 to decide on a date for the conduct of the bye-elections,” the statement said.
The INEC spokesperson appealed to all stakeholders to continue to cooperate with the commission in its efforts to conduct credible elections in a safe and conducive environment.
He stated that Thursday’s meeting followed an engagement with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) on October 22, to deliberate on the 15 outstanding bye-elections in 11 states of the Federation earlier scheduled for October 31.
Some of the areas where bye-elections would be conducted include Bayelsa Central senatorial district, Bayelsa West senatorial district, Nganzai State Constituency in Borno, Bayo State Constituency in Borno, and Cross River North senatorial district.
The poll would also hold in Obudu State Constituency in Cross River, Imo North senatorial district, Lagos East senatorial district, Kosofe II State Constituency in Lagos, Plateau South senatorial district, Bakura State Constituency in Zamfara, and Ibaji State Constituency in Kogi, among others.
