The chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said on Wednesday, July 31, that it was concerned about the safety of lives and property before, during and after the off-cycle governorship elections in Edo and Ondo states.

Speaking at its quarterly consultative meeting with media executives, Yakubu said the recent incident in Edo state leading to the death of security personnel was worrisome.

He disclosed that even though there has been no report of any further security breach in the state after the incident, the committee has scheduled a meeting with leaders of the security agencies to discuss security concerns in the run-off to the conduct of the two elections.

He said: “Campaign by political parties and candidates is in full swing in both Edo and Ondo states. The Commission finds the recent event in Edo State resulting in the death of a security personnel worrisome.

“Happily, there has been no incident known to the Commission since then. Nevertheless, the Commission will meet with the security agencies as early as Friday this week under the auspices of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES). I want to assure you that security in Edo and Ondo will be a major issue for discussion at the meeting.

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“We are as concerned about the safety of your personnel and equipment just as we are about the security of our own officials, observers, service providers and, above all, the voters. We will also work with the security agencies to ensure that accredited journalists are granted unimpeded access to all voting and collation locations.

He said: “As the Edo State Governorship approaches, I wish to remind media organisations that the portal for media accreditation (https://imap.inecnigeria.org) is still open. As of 8.02 am today, Wednesday 31st July 2024, 24 media organisations representing print, radio, television and online have uploaded the details of 227 personnel for the election.

“I urge you to expedite action by ensuring that all interested media organisations submit their applications before the deadline of Thursday 5th September 2024. This will enable the Commission to produce and deliver the accreditation tags for your reporters, camera operators, technical and other support staff in good time for the election.

“At the same time, I wish to remind you of your obligation as journalists to report factually and accurately about the election and electoral activities in compliance with the ethics of your noble profession.

“You should continue to be a bulwark against fake news, misinformation, and disinformation. I urge you to fully comply with the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage. Similarly, you are required to comply with the INEC guidelines for media accreditation available on our website www.inecnigeria.org.

“Turning to the issue of bye-elections, you may recall that at our last meeting, the Commission informed you about the existence of vacancies in four States, involving three State Constituencies and one Federal Constituency.

“Since then, two more vacancies have been declared by the Honourable Speaker of the House of Representatives following the death of the members representing Ibadan North Federal Constituency of Oyo State and the Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency of Kaduna State. The Commission will soon announce the dates for the bye-elections.”