The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has intensified efforts to expand existing polling units in Kebbi.
This is in a move to degrade overcrowding and aid increase in voter turnout during elections.
Ahmad Mahmud, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, in the state said this at a meeting with electoral and assistant electoral officers in Birnin Kebbi on Thursday.
Mr Mahmud said, “consultation and building of national consensus around the expansion of access to polling units and the movement of voting points to un-served and underserved areas as stand-alone polling units are currently going on.
“In the next few days, the commission will conclude the consultative phase and release clear guidelines for the movement of voting points to decongest the existing ones.’’
Mr Mahmud said that no voting point would be moved from one Local Government to another, adding that the expansion of polling units would not confer any advantage to any state of the federation.
“The aim is just to decongest existing polling units, degrade overcrowding, aid increase of voter turnout and improve the quality of legal services rendered by the commission.
“The conduct of continuous voter registration using an improved enrolment device is a top priority for the commission.
“All Nigerians eleigible for registration should be assured that the commission will resume the continuous voter’s registration exercise as soon as the expansion of access to polling units is completed,’’ he said.
According to him, all polling units will have a lower threshold of 750 voters and an upper threshold of 1,000.
The REC also said that the commission would ramp up the use of technology in the electoral process, adding that plan to achieve this had reached advanced stage.
NAN
