Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu, has called on political parties to take responsibility for the conduct of their supporters and prevent violence in the forthcoming by-elections and off-cycle governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states.
During a meeting with the leaders of political parties in Abuja yesterday, Prof Yakubu expressed concern over the use of thugs during elections to intimidate voters, harass election officials, and disrupt the electoral process, which sometimes leads to the destruction of election materials.
He emphasised the need for all parties to address this issue and ensure peaceful environment during campaigns and voting.
"Campaign in public by parties and candidates in the three states commenced on 14th July, 2023 as provided in the timetable and schedule of activities for the governorship elections.
"Sadly, there are already disturbing reports of clashes between opposing parties with claims and counter claims of innocence or culpability. These claims help no one. Call your supporters to order," he said.
The INEC chairman urged the parties to call their supporters to order and prevent such incidents from escalating further.
According to him, "As we review the general election, we also need to focus our attention on the forthcoming by-elections and the three off-cycle governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi States.
"For the commission, we are looking at some of the lessons learnt from the general election to improve our performance in the forthcoming elections.
"We are focusing, among other issues, on election technology, recruitment and training of ad hoc staff, the conduct of some of our regular and ad hoc officials, security issues, logistics in particular and our relationship with other service providers in general.
"I also appeal to party leaders for similar introspection on the conduct of your candidates and their supporters. The use of thugs during elections to harass election officials, intimidate voters, and disrupt processes, sometimes resulting in the destruction of election materials or even worse must be addressed."
Yakubu acknowledged complaints from some political parties regarding the misuse of incumbency powers in certain states, which hindered access to public facilities for media campaigns and outdoor advertising due to exorbitant fees or outright denial.
He assured that this matter would be addressed and discussed during the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) meeting.
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The INEC boss reiterated the commission's commitment to ensuring that the upcoming elections are conducted fairly and credibly.
He mentioned that lessons learned from the 2023 general election would be taken into account to improve the performance of future elections.
"At the same time, I must also acknowledge the perennial complaints from some political parties that the power of incumbency is used in some States to restrain some parties and candidates from access to public facilities for media campaigns and outdoor advertising through exorbitant fees or outright denial.
"This often leads to the mutual destruction of advertising materials such as billboards, resulting in altercations and violence involving supporters of opposing political parties.
"This matter will be discussed at the next meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) scheduled for Friday this week," he added.
