Yakubu charges RECS not to be distracted by politicians

• INEC commissioner warns parents against registering children • CAN in Kogi State raises concern over under-aged voting

Frommsugh Ityokura (Abuja), Inemesit Akpan-nsoh (Uyo) and John Akubo (Lokoja)

CHAIRMAN of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmud Yakubu, has charged Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECS) across the federation to be firm on the side of the law as the nation draws closer to another round of elections.

The INEC boss, who spoke at a meeting with the RECS at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja yesterday, urged them not to be distracted by politicians, especially during the period of the conduct of the 2019 general elections.

Yakubu said that as preparations for the forthcoming polls reach its crescendo, INEC would naturally be drawn to controversies given the attitude of politicians.

In a similar vein, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Mike Igini, has urged parents and guardians in the state to ensure that only children of 18 years are made to register during the ongoing Continuous Voter’s Registration (CVR) exercise. He stated this while unveil- ing the new Direct Data Capture Machine (DDCM) at the INEC office in Uyo Local Council.

According to him, those in the riverine areas in the state would not be left out during the ongoing CVR exercise.

He, therefore, urged those who have not registered yet to do so, adding that the new DDC machines acquired by the commission and distributed to different states were designed to make the continuous registration exercise less time consuming.

However, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kogi State Chapter, has described the recent revelation in Kano of underaged voting as a dangerous trend for the Nigerian democracy, which must be tamed.

The State CAN Chairman, Bishop John Ibenu, who raised the alarm yesterday in Lokoja when the association paid a courtesy call on the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC), said as a religious body, they believe in the sanctity of the electoral process, adding that the issue of under-aged voting during elections would not speak well of the Nigerian democracy.