INEC Presents Sample Ballot Papers

The INEC in Abuja presented samples of ballot papers and boxes for the April general elections before representatives of political parties.

INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega, on the occasion, said the essence was to explain to the political parties the level of the commission’s preparedness for the forthcoming elections.

He also spoke on logistics, operations, ICT, legal matters and guidelines for the general elections.

Jega urged party leaders to educate their supporters on the use of the materials and sensitise them on the need to eschew violence for the peaceful conduct of the elections.

He condemned the spate of violence across the country on daily basis, adding that it was capable of truncating the electoral process.

“This is a matter of great concern and unfortunately a lot of these are attributable to some unguarded utterances of some leaders of political parties or candidates at national or state levels.

“I, therefore, use this opportunity to urge you to be of good conduct during the election and to urge your members to eschew violence and to pursue peaceful ways of resolving disputes in the electoral process,” Jega said.

Jega posited that the accreditation procedure was going to be a difficult one.

“Obviously, it will require peaceful conduct on the part of the participants in the process.

“But given the commitment and undertakings political parties have made when they signed the code of conduct, it is important that things are implemented to the letter in order to ensure violence-free and credible elections,” he said.