The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, says it has finally cracked the hard nut of expanding voting centers, through the creation of new polling units, which now put the figure of a total number if polling units in Nigeria at 176,846.
INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, during the Commission’s meeting with Resident Electoral Commissions in Abuja, said after due consultations with stakeholders and fieldwork, 56,872 voting points and voting point settlements were converted and added to the existing 119,974 polling units, to arrive at the new number of polling units.
Prof. Yakubu also announced dates for Ekiti and Osun 2022 governorship elections.
The history of creating and expanding polling units in Nigeria has been a complex one for Nigeria’s electoral management body in the last 25 years.
Before 2010, the commission operated on a round figure of approximately 120,000 polling units, and a census was undertaken by the commission before the 2011 general election arrived at the precise figure of 119,973 polling units.
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INEC Chairman, Professor Yakubu, said the adequacy and accessibility in terms of number and location across the country, were some of the challenges that had to be addressed in the interest of credible elections.
After consultation with stakeholders, the Commission has successfully removed 749 polling units from inappropriate locations to appropriate public facilities or open spaces in line with our policy to guarantee unencumbered access to polling units for all voters. Of this figure, 232 were removed from private properties, 145 royal palaces, 6 mosques, 21 churches, and 9 shrines.
The remaining 336 polling units were relocated for various reasons which include distance, difficult terrain, congestion, communal conflict, new settlements, and general insecurity.
Yakubu said, “The Commission is glad to report that 25 years since the current polling units were created in 1996, the hard nut is finally and successfully cracked after several unsuccessful attempts. Nigeria now has 176,846 full-fledged polling units.”
While calling on political parties and aspirants to ensure rancour-free primaries and peaceful electioneering campaigns, the Commission noted that the detailed timetable and schedule of activities for the two elections have been uploaded on its website and social media platforms.