As part of its preparations for the November governorship election in Anambra State, the Independent National Electoral Commission has begun moves to relocate polling units from shrines and odd places in the state.
INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner for the state, Mr. Mkpachukwu Orji, disclosed this on Monday in Awka, the state capital, during a stakeholders’ forum on expansion of voter access to polling units.
According to Orji, there are currently over 1000 polling units located in the houses of traditional rulers, churches, residences of political office holders and others in the state.
He said the planned relocation of the polling units from the odd places in the state would give the electorate unfettered access to enable to freely exercise their voting rights during the forthcoming governorship election in the state.
“Those polling units in such inappropriate places are not good for our elections. Most time, people see them as personal polling units. We want to make the polling units accessible to all voters,” he said.
Orji also disclosed that INEC had plans to increase the number of polling units in the state from 4,608 to 5,720 to enable more voters exercise their rights.
The REC, however, expressed regret that less than 30 percent of the registered voters in the state cast their votes in the 2019 general elections.
He appealed to stakeholders in the state to mobilise voters to participate actively in the November governorship election in the state.
Orji further stated that voter registration would commence in the state on June 28, 2021 to get accommodate those who just attained the voting age so that they can now participate in the election.
Chairman of Anambra State People’s Democratic Party PDP, Chief Ndubisi Nwobu, and the Special Adviser to Governor Willie Obiano on Political Matters Mr. Ifatu Obiokoye, commended INEC for expanding the electoral access.
They, however, regretted that INEC took such decision without seeking inputs of the stakeholders in the state.
They said that if the INEC had consulted them before deciding to relocate polling units, they would have made useful inputs since they are the people on ground.
They urged INEC to make available to them the new polling units and the ones to be relocated so that they could study and make necessary suggestions and inputs for a seamless election.