Ebenezer Adurokiya and Micheal Chukwuebuka Reporting From Osogbo
THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that all sensitive materials for tomorrow’s Osun State governorship election have been successfully distributed to the various local government areas across the state.
In an exclusive interview with Stonix News on Friday in Osogbo, the INEC Public Relations Officer for Osun State, Mr Musa Olumide, provided a comprehensive update on the commission’s final preparations, revealing that a court-ordered reprint of ballot papers had caused a significant delay in the logistics process.
Mr Olumide explained that the commission had to discard previously printed materials and start afresh following a recent court judgement that mandated the inclusion of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on the ballot .
“We got a judgement a few days ago on this matter, so we have to start all over to reprint all our sensitive materials. Materials that we had before had to be discarded, so that delayed us a lot yesterday,” Mr Olumide stated.
Overnight Distribution
The PRO detailed the intense logistical operation that took place yesterday to ensure the materials reached their destinations on time.
The consignment of newly printed materials arrived at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) premises around 9 am yesterday.
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Following an upload process and a brief conference with the Honourable Representative, the commission began the distribution.
“We started with the distribution to the farthest local governments—Ifedayo, Ife South, Ife East, and Ila. After that, we faced other local governments, and we did that till around 2 am yesterday. We are sure that the last local government that left here was Aiyedaade Local Government,” Mr Olumide confirmed.
“I can confirm to you now that all the materials are there in the various local government areas,” he assured.
Activation of RACs
Mr Olumide outlined the next phase of the deployment plan, which involves activating Registration Area Centres (RACs) located close to polling units to facilitate early voting.
“Our plan is to start the vote very early tomorrow. By 12:30, or latest by 2:00 pm, all the RACs will be activated, and all the materials will get to those RACs. From there, the officers in charge will start their work by distributing the materials to polling units, and that will be handed over to the corps members who are going to be at various polling units,” he explained.
Voter Collection and Security
With a significant percentage of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) already collected—officials put the figure at over 79 per cent, with other reports indicating 81.5 per cent—Mr Olumide called on residents of Osun State to turn out early and vote .
He also addressed concerns about potential misinformation and tension, common challenges during elections in Nigeria.
“It’s an election year, and we are used to tension and rumours, so we should be used to that. The misinformation and disinformation is always rampant in an election year,” he noted.
He appealed to citizens to report any irregularities, assuring them that police officers would be present at polling units to maintain order.
“Election is not an event; it’s a process and it involves all stakeholders. We have assurance that come Saturday, we will have a peaceful election, so we are good to go,” Mr Olumide concluded.
INEC has assured political parties, civil society organisations, and the general public of its commitment to conducting a free, fair, credible, and inclusive election .
