INEC extends voting time in Edo LGAs where election started late

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced an extension of the voting period in the ongoing Edo governorship election.

In a statement on Saturday, Mohammed Haruna, INEC’s national commissioner and member of the information and voter education committee, said the process would be extended at polling units where voting did not start early.

Haruna said the extension will allow voting until all eligible voters who arrived at polling units by 2:30 pm have cast their ballots.

“The Commission continues to monitor the ongoing governorship election in Edo State from our situation room at the National Headquarters in Abuja,” the statement reads.

“Our monitoring indicates early commencement of polls in many polling units, but there are also reports of late commencement in some locations.

“To ensure that no voter is disenfranchised, the Commission wishes to reiterate that, in line with our Regulations and Guidelines, voting will be extended wherever it commenced late and will continue until the last voter on the queue who arrived at the Polling Unit by 2.30 pm has voted.”

Haruna added that the commission’s office in Edo will ensure adequate power supply from backup generators in affected polling units or ward collation centres, as necessary.

BACKGROUND

Seventeen candidates are battling for the votes of 2.2 million electorates in the race to succeed Godwin Obaseki, incumbent governor of Edo.

Candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Labour Party (LP) are the major contenders in the election.

Earlier on Saturday, Philip Shaibu, the reinstated deputy governor of Edo, expressed concerns about the non-functioning bimodal voter accreditation system (BVAS) machines at his polling unit.

Also, some voters protested the absence of result sheets at their polling unit in ward 8, unit 1 of Orhionmwon LGA.

The voters were seen in a viral video disrupting the voting process, demanding the result sheets before casting their ballots.

However, INEC officials at the polling unit pacified the voters and assured them that the result sheets were being conveyed to the polling unit.