Anayo Ezugwu
As residents of Lagos State go to the polls to elect chairmen, vice-chairmen and councilors tomorrow, YIAGA Africa has advised the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) to ensure early deployment of electoral materials in the state’s council elections.
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos, director of programmes, YIAGA Africa, Cynthia Mbamalu said LASIEC must ensure uniformity of consistency in the application of guidelines across all polling stations by election officials.
“LASIEC must improve on its communication and engagement with election stakeholders. The commission should improve it’s collaboration with election observers, CSOs, security and the media. It must be transparent and accountable to boost citizens’ confidence in the local government area election process.
“For future local government area elections, LASIEC should provide a simple and straightforward process to facilitate timely accreditation for domestic observers,” she said.
According to Mbamalu, security agencies should collaborate with the commission to secure election materials, personnel and citizens. She charged the to be professional in the discharge of their duties during the election.
“Security personnel deployed for the election should conduct themselves with the utmost sense of responsibility, professionalism and impartiality. They should be on the alert to forestall any attempt to circumvent the election using violence and intimidation,” she said.