Ekiti election: Voting so far peaceful – NSCDC, INEC

Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have described the ongoing governorship election in Ekiti as peaceful, with large voter turnout.

Speaking during a visit to the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Teller Adeniran, shortly monitoring the exercise, the acting Deputy Commandant-General (DCG) of NSCDC, Haruna Muhammad, said that voter turnout was impressive and had been without any chaos.

“This is a sign that people are enthusiastic to vote.

“We have received reports from other local government areas and it has been positive, as voting is going on simultaneously,” he said.

Mr Muhammad said that the corps would continue to work closely with INEC and other sister agencies to ensure a hitch-free election process.

“The election is more like an isolated one. So, we don’t want to give room for violence,” he said.

Mr Muhammad said that the corps had deployed intelligence officers to possible flash points for effective intelligence gathering.

“We are prepared to protect national assets and we have reserved personnel in case of any emergency.

“When the poll closes, the men on ground are to be used throughout the night, while those working now will rest and be redeployed to their positions,” he said.

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Responding, Mr Adeniran said that INEC officials were deployed in real time, while polling booths opened early.

“The major aim and determination of the commission are to have an open poll.

“We had created new units and migrated some names from some polling units. They had their names pasted and they had been informed,” he said.

Mr Adeniran said that this was to reduce high number of voters in certain polling units.

He advised security agencies to be more proactive in tackling security challenges, especially in case of any emergency.

The REC appreciated the corps, alongside other security agencies, for diligently securing the electoral process.

(NAN)