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2023 polls: Use Ghana, U.S. as benchmarks, PDP tells Yakubu

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has advised the reappointed Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to use Ghana and United States as benchmarks for the conduct of the 2023 general elections. The PDP, in a statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said the country expects nothing but free, fair, transparent and credible general elections from INEC in 2023.

It warned Yakubu not to resort to excuses but to use the more than two years ahead of the 2023 general election to rejig the nation’s electoral commission and work out legislations and operational rules that would guarantee a free, credible and all-inclusive electoral process. According the party, Yakubu should “learn from the Ghana electoral commission, which is making more room for a more all-inclusive electoral process by kick-starting special voting system to enable personnel of critical service providers cast their ballots days ahead of the December 7, election date.”

The PDP also said the INEC Chairman should study how the United States credibly conducted a keenly contested 2020 pres-idential election without recourse to government influence and use of security to suppress the wishes of citizens as expressed at the polling units.

The party further added that the INEC Chairman should “engage political stakeholders for legislations, rules and field procedures, so as to curb violence, ensure the security of electoral materials and guarantee the safety of voters.

“The INEC Chairman should initiate processes and procedures that will guarantee prompt arrival of ballot materials, rapid accreditation and voting; instant transmission of results from polling units as well as seamless collation of figures.

“Our party demands Prof. Yakubu to improve on legislations that restrict the involvement of security agencies in voting and collation processes, check underage and alien voters, vote-buying, alteration of results and manipulation of voter register.”

PDP demanded that Yakubu should “pursue an amendment to the Electoral Act to make it mandatory for INEC to publish voter register online, thus terminating the doctoring of the register and accreditation process. “It is therefore instructive to restate that with the new appointment, Prof Yakubu has been given an ample time and opportunity to redeem the image of the commission and give our nation a credible election that will be devoid of the failures, disappointments, miscarriages and litigations that characterized his first five years tenure.

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