From Maurice Okafor, Ênugu
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Enugu, yesterday received electoral sensitive materials for Isi-Uzo State Constituency bye-election scheduled for Saturday, December 5, from the Central Bank of Nigeria, Enugu Branch.
The commission’s officials received the material in the presence of electoral stakeholders, political parties and the media at about 2p.m.
Receiving the sensitive materials, Emeka Ononamadu, INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Enugu State, told newsmen that the commission had remained transparent and carried everybody along in the bye-election.
According to him, making this process open is to ensure that everybody see that the sensitive materials were not tempered with and had remained intact.
“We are ready to conduct a free, far and hitch-free election come Saturday and what we are doing now further establishes our fairness to all.
“From here, we will move the sensitive materials to the Isi-Uzo Local Government Area secretariat, where we have emplaced serious and water-tight security.
“While on Friday evening, we will sort the sensitive materials and move them to our racks for deployment to the polling centres Saturday morning,’’ he said.
Chidubum Udeh, who represented the All Progress Congress (APC), lauded INEC for carrying everybody along, adding that “we have been experience transparency and inclusiveness so far from INEC’’.
Udeh said that his party was satisfied with the processes so far and “we have no complaint’’.
The PDP representative at the CBN, however, did not speak to journalists, adding that “I was not permitted to speak to the press’’.
Ken Ike, Chairman of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Enugu State, noted that since the official announcement for the bye-election, INEC had been consulting with various electoral stakeholders in the state.
