The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has harped on the use of the smart card reader during the Gwaram federal constituency bye election in Jigawa state.
Indeed, the commission emphasised that it would not hesitate to cancel outrightly results from polling unit that did not comply with the use of the smart card reader.
INEC, commissioner of information and voter education Barrister Festus Okoye made the declaration on Friday during a press briefing at the Dutse INEC office.
Okoye stated that “this time around INEC would no longer condone the habit by some politicians that connive with agents of other political parties to deliberately shun the use of the card reader to conduct votings in some polling units”.
According to him, “INEC will consider that all voters have cast their votes while we would outrightly cancel the entire voting that took place in the affected polling units”, he warned.
He said vote buying is a grevious electoral offence which must be resisted by both politicians and electorates, adding that, it is the responsibility of the law enforcement agents to fish out perpetrators for onward prosecution.
Mr okoye explained that no fewer than 1,111 adhoc staff have been deployed for the Saturday, Gwaram House of Representatives bye-election while 854 security personnels have been deployed to the area.
