SAN FRANCISCO, February 14, (THEWILL) – The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed Saturday, February 17 2017, for the conclusion of outstanding 2015 elections in Rivers.
This was disclosed in Port Harcourt, on Tuesday, in a statement by the commission’s Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Aniedi Ikoiwak, saying the exercise would hold in Etche and Omuma Local Government Areas.
Ikoiwak disclosed that the election is to fill the Etche Constituency II seat in the House of Assembly and Etche/Omuma seat in the House of Representatives which had been vacant following court rulings that invalidated the 2015 federal and state legislative elections in the state.
THEWILL recalls that election in the area was marred by violence in the March 19, 2016 re-run polls which forced the electoral body to suspend the polls midway.
The exercise was repeated on December 10, 2016 but it was inconclusive in Etche and in some part of Omuma due to some irregularities, prompting the repeat which has been fixed for Saturday.
According to the statement, Ikoiwak said that the election would hold in 147 polling units in 19 Registration Areas in Etche and one polling unit (Umuogba Community I) in Omuma.
“The commission assures the public of a credible and fair conclusion of the election in Etche Local Government Area,” the statement said.
“The commission also encourages eligible voters in the constituencies to come out en masse to vote for their candidates.”
It also said that security agencies had been contacted to provide adequate security during the exercise.
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