The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that presidential and National Assembly elections which began on Saturday, March 28, 2015 will be extended to Sunday, March 29, 2015 in several centers across the country where voting could not be completed.
Making this known via a statement, the Chairman of INEC Information, Voter Education and Publicity Committee, Chris Iyimoga, explained that the move became necessary so that no Nigerian is disenfranchised.
He said: “INEC has been monitoring field reports on the accreditation process since commencement this morning.
“Whereas the process has gone well in several places, in some others it has encountered some challenges, especially the card readers. Consequently, accreditation has been slow in many places and has not commenced at all in some others.
“Even though the guidelines for the 2015 general elections provide that where card readers fail to work and cannot be replaced, elections in such PUs will be postponed to the next day, the scale of the challenge we have observed has necessitated a reconsideration of the provision of the guidelines.
“The commission has therefore decided that in PUs where card readers fail to work, the Presiding Officer shall manually accredit voters.
“The Presiding Officer shall mark the voters register upon being satisfied that the person presenting a PVC is the owner. Notwithstanding, in PUs where accreditation was suspended to the next day in accordance with the guidelines, arrangements will be made for voters to vote tomorrow, subject to the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010.”
