The Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),
Mahmood Yakubu, has revealed the lesson Nigeria’s top electoral body
learnt from the ongoing election in Liberia.
According to him, the need for early preparations is a valuable
take-away Nigeria has made from Liberia as it prepares for the general
elections in 2019.
Yakubu, who is the President of the ECOWAS Network of Electoral
Commissions (ECONEC), made this known on Tuesday through a phone
interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
Professor Yakubu, who spoke from Liberia, said: “On comparison with
Nigeria, I must say that there is a little comparison as such because
the entire system of voting here (in Liberia) is manual while the aspect
of our own process (in Nigeria) is electronic.
“But one lesson I think that we can learn from what is happening in
Liberia is the importance of early preparation for elections,
particularly in the area of logistics.
“In the areas of voter education, awareness, identification of
polling units, ensuring that people know exactly where to go on Election
Day to vote,” he said.
On the assessment of the conduct of the Liberian poll, the INEC boss
adjudged the process as peaceful, describing it is a plus for the
country’s democracy and the West African sub-region.
He also commended the efforts of the country’s electoral commission
and the preparations made ahead of the election as no major incident has
been recorded so far.
“So in all and all, it’s all good-natured – very peaceful, very calm
and people have voted. The first stage of the process, which is the
actual opening of the polling units on commencement of polling has gone
remarkably well,” he said.