The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman,Professor Mahmood Yakubu, hinted at a potential bye-election on Thursday, February 1, 2024. He did this in a recent meeting with political party leaders.
According to Hobnob News, this move is in response to court orders, resignations, and unfortunate deaths that have left significant gaps in both state and federal legislatures.
Apparently, Professor Yakubu disclosed that the judiciary, following the conclusion of legal battles, has mandated the commission to organize rerun elections in 34 federal and state constituencies. Among these constituencies are one senatorial seat, 11 federal constituencies, and 22 state constituencies, all awaiting fresh representation.
He added,
“I want to assure you that at the end of all the litigations, including the Governorship elections pending on appeal at the Supreme Court, the Commission will present a comprehensive analysis of the petitions, including cases where the Commission was ordered to issue Certificates of Return to other candidates and the reasons for the decisions by the Courts as part of the lessons learned from the 2023 General Election for the consequential reforms to improve the conduct of future elections.
“With regard to the bye-elections, you may recall that in my recent address at the swearing-in of new Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) which was combined with our last quarterly meeting with the RECs nationwide, I made a commitment that the Commission will conduct elections to fill vacancies in the National and State Assembly constituencies.
“The Commission is looking at the first week of February 2024 i.e. in just a little over one month to conduct both the re-run and bye-elections. At the end of this consultative meeting, the Commission will meet to review preparations and announce a definite date, including the detailed Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the elections. Full delimitation details, including locations, number of Polling Units, registered voters and Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) collected in each constituency will be uploaded to our website for public information.”
HOBNOB NEWS
