Guardian News: President Flags-off Voter Registration

[NewsCaster]

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan on Saturday flagged-off the 2011 voter registration exercise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at his home town, Otuoke in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

This is just as the INEC Chairman, Attahiru Jega, has called on Nigerians to exercise patience during the registration exercise as initial challenges bothering on deployment of men and materials, thumb printing, and the slow response of the data capturing machine in some areas would be addressed by the technical department of the commission before long.   

Jonathan, who arrived his ward at 2:15, was registered with members of his family including his wife, Patience, and his mother. Jega handed them their voter card after their registration in a ceremony witnessed by top INEC officials, Governor Timipre Sylva of Bayelsa State and his Rivers State counterpart, Rotimi Amaechi, among others.

Jega, who addressed journalists shortly after the ceremony at Otuoke, said the exercise would take place in 120,000 polling units across the country, adding that the commission was able to deploy 98,000 Data Capturing Machines for the commencement of the exercise.

Describing the exercise as massive, like never before, the INEC boss said although there had been complaints of technical problems encountered by registration officials as the exercise got underway, they would be adequately rectified.

He, however, noted that less than 1,000 polling units had initial problems. Jega appealed to Nigerians to be patient as the commission had intended that the exercise would start simultaneously in all polling units but for initial technical hiccups experienced.

While expressing optimism that the exercise would be a huge success, he said it would be difficult to achieve 100 per cent success.

He also stated that it is too early to contemplate extension of the date of the registration because the exercise was barely six hours old as at the time President Jonathan and members of his family got registered.

Earlier, Jega had led other INEC officials to monitor the registration of voters within the state capital, Yenagoa, and its metropolis before heading to Otuoke.

The coordinator of the National Think Tank Professor Steve Azaiki has also call on the citizen to come out in their numbers to participate in the registration excercise.

Azaiki told The Guardian in Yenagoa that the only way people of the country could vote for desired leaders is come out and vote.

President Flags-off Voter Registration