IDIBIA GABRIEL, KADUNA
In its determination to expansion to enhance more voters access to pulling units in 2023 elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has created additional 2910 voting points in kaduna State.
National Commissioner INEC Mall Mohammed Kudu Haruna disclosed this weekend at the election stakeholders forum meeting on expansion conversion of voting points to polling units and others issues held in Kaduna.
Commissioner Haruna who is in charge of Kaduna, Taraba, Nasarawa among other states in the north said the core essence of the expansion is to ensure voters access to polling units to exercise their civic right smoothly.
Haruna said voters access to polling units had been under declined in Nigeria over the years for several reasons borders on not just growing population but also the number of polling units.
He said access to polling unit has become extremely cumbersome not only because of over crowded but also the terrain and difficulties in accessing them, adding that the poling unit serving the nation’s currently population estimated at 200 million was 25 years back when census put the country’s population at 140 million.
According to him previous attempts made to create polling units, voting points and voting point settlements failed, saying that the commission decided to start early this time so as to be able to consult stakeholders widely to avoid the mistakes of the past.
He also maintained that the commission has created 2910 voting points in addition to the existing 5102 polling units to breakdown numbers of voters to ease convenient and access to polling units by voters.
Mall Haruna expressed satisfaction with the voting points created in Kaduna state particularly in areas where access to polling units had a big challenges.
On relocation and displacement of people owning to security challenges, Haruna explained that continuous voters registration would capture and managed voters who indicated intension.
Representative of kaduna police command Mr Haruna Abubakar all the security arms would usually meet and sought out strategies in tackling the situation during elections with the support of the civil populace.
Earlier, the resident electoral commissioner Kaduna state, Mohammed Awwal said recounted the previous attempt made by the commission under Prof Mahmud Jega to create voting points and voting point settlements in local government and the debate the ensued and subsequent attempt made and failed.
