Persons displaced by Boko Haram insurgency currently taking refuge at various camps in Borno State will vote in their camps, the Independent Natioan Electoral Commission, INEC, has said.
INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mohammed Magaji Ibrahim stated this while giving update on the preparations for the February 16 presidential election during a round table with stakeholders organised by the Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, Borno council in Maiduguri on Wednesday.
According to him, the commission had been holding discussion with the leadership of the IDPs and other stakeholders.
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“The IDPs will vote at the camps. We’ve identified major IDPs camps, about eight of them representing different local governments. We are already discussing with them. We will finalise where they will have their elections,” he disclosed.
He said about 2.3 million registered voters had collected their Personal Voter’s Card, PVCs.
He urged those who have collected their PVCs to safeguard them as the commission would not issue any card until after the 2019 polls. “There is no room for a replacement,” he stressed.
He gave the names of camps where the IDPs will vote except Kala Balge which suffered more displacement due to recent attacked by Boko Haram. There are over 50 IDPs camps in Maiduguri, the state capital.
The leader of the Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, Ahmed Shehu, appealed to the media to provide “neutral and formidable ground” for the participants in the poll.
He also urged the media to wait for the confirmation of results before making any announcement.
“The only true result should come from INEC and not an individual pushing it in the media,” he warned.
He tasked journalists to follow up promises made by politicians after elections to ensure they keep their promises.
