Ahead of the forthcoming local government elections slated for September 21 across the 27 LGAs in the state, the Imo State Independent Electoral Commission (ISIEC) has assured the residents of Imo State of a free, fair, and peaceful exercise.
The Chairman of the Commission, Charles Ejiogu, gave the assurance while addressing participants during a stakeholders’ meeting on how to achieve a credible election.
Ejiogu said the forthcoming poll will be the fifth time such an exercise has taken place in the state since the re-enthronement of democratic governance in 1999, with previous elections held in 1999, 2004, 2010, and 2018.
The ISIEC boss, while highlighting the importance of the exercise, maintained that the third tier of government remains the bedrock for even development in rural areas and the only source of deepening democratic elements at the grassroots.
He stated that following the law establishing the Commission in 2000, as amended in Law No. 14, ISIEC is empowered with the responsibilities of conducting and supervising free, transparent, and credible local government council elections in the state.
“To this end, ISIEC has scheduled to conduct the much-expected council elections in the 305 Registration Areas/Wards and in all the 4,758 polling units in the 27 Local Government Area Councils of Imo State on Saturday, September 21, 2024.
“Therefore, the Commission is taking this opportunity to assure all critical stakeholders of its preparedness to perform its constitutional duty.
“Today’s stakeholders’ meeting is to release election guidelines and a timetable as part of the activities that will ultimately usher in the emergence of 27 democratically elected Council Chairmen, their Deputies, and 305 Councilors,” he said.
The ISIEC Chairman added that arrangements for the recruitment of ad-hoc personnel are in top gear and that it will include both field and internal ad-hoc personnel.
Talking about security, he stated that the Commission is not oblivious to the imperatives of putting in place water-tight security. He mentioned that they are in touch with heads of security agencies to achieve a hitch-free exercise and will stop at nothing in doing just that, maintaining that adequate logistics and ground power will be mounted as it is key to the successful conduct of the forthcoming council polls.
Chief Ejiogu further emphasized the Commission’s ongoing sensitization and mobilization efforts with critical stakeholders, informing that meetings with traditional rulers, presidents general, political leaders, and other relevant bodies are still on course.
“We are also liaising with other democratic institutions such as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and we are satisfied with their level of support so far, even as we look forward to more of such support. The security agencies have also assured us of their readiness to render necessary assistance. The voluntary agencies are not left out in this regard, and we cannot take any of them for granted,” he informed.
He also noted the importance of the media in the forthcoming exercise, emphasizing that the fourth estate of the realm remains sacrosanct stakeholders and established strategic partners in progress.
In a similar vein, the ISIEC boss used the moment to commend the governor for creating the opportunity for the exercise to see the light of day, assuring that he would deliver on the task given to him.
Those present at the meeting included heads of security agencies, sole administrators of the 27 LGAs in the state, political leaders, traditional rulers, presidents general, civil society organizations, market women, youth groups, and religious leaders.
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