The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, said on Monday that the commission would need to improve on two critical areas of logistics and results management, in the November 16 governorship election in Ondo State.

He said the commission had learned some lessons from the shortcomings in the Edo State election, and that correction would be made in the coming election.

Mr Yakubu, a professor, spoke in Akure, the Ondo State capital, while assessing the state of readiness for the election.

He said: “We are here, essentially, to observe what is happening and to acknowledge the good work that the office has done.

“Over the next few days, we will be meeting with political parties, civil society organisations, the media, and security agencies.”

He said one of the planned activities ahead of the poll is the conduct of mock accreditation of voters, “which will take place in 16 polling units across six local government areas within the three senatorial zones of the state.”

“This is primarily why we are here. Additionally, as part of the activities already outlined, we will hold a stakeholders’ meeting on Thursday, and the following day, the National Peace Committee will invite all stakeholders to participate in the signing of the National Peace Accord. This is the essence of our visit,” he added.

On the lessons learned from the Edo State governorship election and previous elections, Mr Yakubu said, ” I have learned valuable lessons, not only from the last election but also from previous ones. Essentially, there are two key challenges.

“The first is logistics — ensuring that polling units open promptly on election day. The second challenge is result management. My assurance to voters in Ondo State is that they will witness significant improvements in these areas.”

He added that one of the activities he would also observe is the mock accreditation of voters.

A peace accord is also expected to be signed among political parties and their candidates.

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Agboola Ajayi, had earlier called for the removal of the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Toyin Babalola, saying she would not be fair during the election because of her birthplace.

But INEC dispelled the allegations, saying Mrs Babalola is not from Ondo State and would not be partial in the polls.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State has elected Mr Peter Nwele as the new chairman.

Nwele stated that he would start bringing those that left the party back to form a formidable force to take over the state in 2027.

He noted that Ebonyi has been a PDP state and that the party will bounce back in 2027.

Nwele spoke during the state congress at the weekend in Abakaliki.

The congress was supervised by a seven-man committee from the National secretariat of the party and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as well as security agencies.

“Ebonyi State is PDP right from time and it will continue to be PDP. People say that there is crisis in PDP, there is no crisis in the party.

“The only thing we want to do now is to embark on bringing those who left the party back.

“PDP is a very large family that will accommodate all of us. So we are ready to start bringing everyone back home.

“We are for forgiveness, we make peace for people to come back home so that we take back our lost mandate,” he stated.

Ugonna Ogbonna, Chairman of the Congress Committee, described the exercise as peaceful and transparent and commended members of the party for conducting themselves orderly.

On his part, the National Vice Chairman, South East of the party, Chief Ali Odefa said the enthusiasm and love for PDP in the state and the country in general was still very strong.

He opined that the party was putting things together to wrest power from APC in 2027.

He dismissed any crisis in the party, saying “there has been total reconciliation, the NWC is one, we are one”.

Odefa implored the new executives of the party in the state to embark on total reconciliation.

The Local Government Elections in Abia State on Saturday faced significant challenges due to a lack of electoral materials and officials at polling stations.

Reporters from the News Agency of Nigeria, who were monitoring the election, observed that the Abia State Independent Electoral Commission (ABSIEC) had not delivered materials to polling stations by 11 a.m., although the commission had scheduled distribution for 7 a.m., with voting set to begin by 8 a.m.

At various locations, including Umuahia South, Osisioma, Aba North, and Aba South LGAs, neither materials nor officials were present at some polling units. Some ad hoc staff were seen waiting at local government headquarters for the arrival of election materials.

In addition, there was a noticeable low voter turnout at many polling units visited across the state. A few voters were present at some locations, waiting for the materials to arrive and for voting to start.

In areas such as Umuahia South, Aba North, South, and Osisioma LGAs, polling units were largely empty of voters, officials, and security personnel. Units visited included Polling Units 009 and 015 at Avonipupe Primary School, Unit 008 at Ipupe Village Hall, and several units at Ogbo Central School and Umuosu Community School.

In an interview, two prospective voters in Ubakala, near Umuahia, voiced frustration over ABSIEC’s failure to facilitate the election effectively. Mrs. Joy Eze shared that she was monitoring her polling unit for updates but eventually decided to tend to her salon customers while waiting. She was eager to vote in support of her preferred candidates for Chairmanship and Councillorship.

Another resident, Mrs. Onyinyechi Ishmael, expressed disinterest in voting, saying her previous experiences made her feel that votes do not count in the country’s elections.

“If our votes count as the leaders claim, I believe there will be signs that election will actually take place.

“Unfortunately, there is no sign that election will take place at the various polling units around my neighborhood,” Ishmael said.

In Aba, Mr Collins Ogbonna, a resident of Ward 3, said that he came out by 8 am to his polling unit 007 to vote but did not see any election officials.

Ogbonna attributed the poor voter turnout to “voter apathy and fear of gunmen” in Aba.

He called on the residents to come out and vote to ensure the right persons assumed political leaderships at the grassroots.

The Deputy Chairmanship Candidate for Zenith Labour Party in Osisioma LGA, Mr Aguwa, told NAN that the eletoral materials had been brought to the council headquarters for the polls.

Aguwa further said that the representatives of other parties inspected and confirmed the materials to be complete.

He, however, said that the materials had yet to be shared “because the LGA, which has about 301 polling units, is complex.”

Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Voter Education and Enlightenment in ABSIEC, Dr Kelechukwu Okere, has described the report of absence of materials at the polling units as “pure falsehood”.

Okere told NAN that the commission made adequate arrangements for the seamless distribution of materials and election officials to ensure a smooth exercise.