POLITICS INEC ENGAGES MEDIA EXECUTIVES FOR THE PURPOSES OF UNVEILING HER PREPAREDNESS TOWARDS EDO STATE GUBERNATORIAL ELECTION COME SEPTEMBER 21ST, 2024

 

BY LEO EZEKIEL

 

The Independent National Electoral Commission INEC on Thursday August 22^nd, 2024 at Vichi Gate Hotel and Suites at Ihama Road, GRA, Benin City, Oredo East Local Government Area, Edo State, South South, Nigeria unveiled her preparedness towards the Edo State Gubernatorial Election come September 21^st, 2024 “As various personnel did speak to the members of Media Executives with all their pragmatic plans to conduct free, fair, credible and peaceful election regardless the challenges that the citizenry are facing presently in the Republic. 

Speaking to the Audience the Administrative Secretary Emmanuel Ogbodu states that the fourth estate of the realm, the media is not just a conveyor of information but also a vital player in the democratic process, particularly during elections,” adding that the importance of ethical journalism is of high paramount to both the commission (INEC) and the Electorate in general. 

The Media Executive Parley also addressed the distribution of Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs), with a call to registered voters to collect their PVCs ahead of the said election. The National Commissioner Honourable Olumekun who is represented by the Resident Electoral Commissioner of Edo State Dr. Anugbum Onuoha announced that PVC collection commenced on August 22, 2024, across all 192 Wards in Edo State and will continue until September 8, 2024, transitioning to Local Government Area offices after August 26, 2024. 

INEC showcases its technological advancements through a presentation on the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS), which is designed to enhance voters accreditation and prevent electoral frauds. Engr. Akan Lawrence, Head of ICT/VR, assured the media that BVAS is robust and capable of transmitting election results even in remote areas without network coverage, thanks to its offline mode feature.

The legal framework guiding the election, particularly the Electoral Act 2022, is also discussed by Barr. Amadi Rita who explained the Act’s role in ensuring a free, fair, credible and peaceful election. 

The Media executives are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Act to better report and analyze the electoral processes. The Chief Press Secretary (CPS) Rotimi Oyekanmi to the National Chairman of INEC Professor Yakubu Muhammed delivered a very captivating lecture to the audience where he used several models to showcase what roles INEC has been playing in the past and will continue to play in all future engagements as a commission established by the laws of the land adding that INEC welcomes objective critiquing as well as that the media is a veritable partner to INEC as a commission.  

The Media Executive Parley concludes with discussions on the online accreditations of media organizations, the roles of social media, fake news and that. 

The challenges posed by misinformation, fake news Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary to the INEC National Chairman, explains the roles of INEC in electoral processes averring that, “INEC is leveraging on the global reach of social media to disseminate timely electoral information to her audience”, outlining the advantages of social media for disseminating accurate information while cautioning against the spread of fake news. 

Mr. Nathaniel Gana one of the INEC ICT Media Executive took time to explain to the audience of how online media registration of covering this Edo Governorship Election for September 21^st, 2024 as well as that of Ondo Governship Election coming up on November 16^th, 2024 adding that the commission has device a means of turning down most registrations of applicants who do not meet up with the requirement of the commission. 

The Media Executive INEC Parley is credibly moderated by Mr Timidi Wariowei.