ABUJA – Ahead of the 2023 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has disclosed the date for the release of the final lists of presidential and governorship candidates.
The nation’s electoral body also said all hands must be on deck to ensure the success of the elections as the nation is entering critical stages.
The INEC chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this yesterday in Abuja at the ‘Expert Meeting on Conducting Elections in Volatile Security Environment’, organized in collaboration with the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD).
Yakubu said on 20th September 2022 the commission will publish the final list of candidates for national elections (Presidential, Senatorial, and House of Representatives) as provided in Section 32(1) of the Electoral Act 2022.
He said, “Activities towards the 2023 general elections will enter the critical stages this month. In the next 19 days, that is on 20th September 2022, the commission will publish the final list of candidates for national elections (Presidential, Senatorial, and House of Representatives) as provided in Section 32(1) of the Electoral Act 2022 and the Timetable and Schedule of Activities released by the commission.
He also urged all political parties and candidates to focus on issue-based campaigns.
“This is the best way to complement our efforts to ensure transparent elections in which only the votes cast by citizens determine the winner,” Yakubu said.
He commended the CDD for providing a platform for stakeholders to discuss an important enabler to the full participation of citizens in the electoral process that is election security.
According to him, by bringing together experts, senior security officials and the INEC leadership to share experience and discuss security concerns ahead of the 2023 general election, CDD hopes to kickstart further collaborative engagements among stakeholders around the security challenges ahead of the election.
He said, “It is timely because the election is fast approaching but there is still time to address the security concerns ahead of the election. Most appropriately, I believe that arising from the shared experience of participants at this meeting, specific recommendations will be made to further enrich our understanding of the security issues in the forthcoming election, the various dimensions of the challenges, and, most importantly, possible measures to respond to them to ensure that elections peacefully hold nationwide as required by law.
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