The Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Amupitan, has cautioned staff of the commission against dereliction of duty ahead of the February 21 Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections.
Amupitan gave the warning in Abuja during an assessment visit and general meeting with FCT staff, describing the election as a test case for the commission and an opportunity to restore public confidence in the electoral process.
The INEC boss charged staff of the FCT office to take full ownership of the forthcoming area council elections, warning that any act of dereliction would attract severe consequences.
He said, “You are the foot soldiers. The success of this election rests on how you perform your responsibilities.”
The chairman reminded personnel that “under the Electoral Act, 2022, there are clear consequences for misconduct, including faulty declaration of results”.
INEC revealed that it would hire a total of 1,132 vehicles from the transport unions ahead of Saturday’s area council polls.
Amupitan stressed the need for strict adherence to INEC regulations, proper deployment of technology, and transparent result management, urging electoral officers to be proactive in addressing challenges at the polling unit level.
The INEC boss identified punctuality as a key performance indicator for a successful election, directing that all polling units must be set up by 8am so that voting could commence by 8:30am as advertised.
He warned that any delays must be communicated to the commission promptly to ensure INEC remained the primary source of information in real time.
Earlier, FCT Resident Electoral Commissioner, Aminu Idris, provided an update on the state of preparedness for the area council elections, assuring the chairman that all non-sensitive materials have been deployed to the six area council offices.
