ENUGU – The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Enugu State has promised to boost security in risk prone areas and communities ahead of the 2015 elections.
Its Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Dr Lawrence Azubuike, made the pledge in Enugu on Thursday when members of the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Enugu Chapter, paid him a visit.
Azubuike, who declined to mention the areas, said the commission would collaborate with security agencies to provide security and tackle other election matters in the areas.
He said the commission would consider precedents and activities at all communities in the state at previous elections with a view to avoiding reoccurrence.
“We will try to identify election issues in various communities. Some of them will be security related which may be peculiar to certain places or communities.
“We will look at activities and check areas where we have had election problems in the past.
“There will be a likelihood that such problems will reoccur so we will do everything to prevent them for smooth conduct of the polls,’’ he said.
The REC said the commission had commenced meetings with the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security to handle security issues during elections.
According to him, the agency is made up of INEC and heads of the various security agencies in the state.
“As we approach 2015, we will now be meeting frequently to make sure we do not leave any stone unturned to guard against any untold issue, security wise.
“We are seriously preparing for the elections. We have intensified trainings of our staff,’’ Azubuike said.
Earlier, the Chairperson of NAWOJ, Mrs Ifeoma Amuta, said the essence of the visit was to solicit partnership with INEC in ensuring free conduct of elections in the state.
Amuta said the association had concluded plans to embark on voter education to encourage the electorate, particularly women, to participate in the elections.
She said the association would also monitor the elections as well as give adequate and objective reportage of the processes.
The chairperson also called on women to come out en masse and ensure the election of credible leaders to move the state forward.
“We want to educate voters on the need to elect credible candidates at the elections. We will ensure adequate coverage of the election,’’ she said. (NAN)