As Osun State gears up for Saturday’s governorship election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office on the Gbongan-Ibadan Road in Osogbo is bustling with activity, marked by increased security presence.
Our correspondent observed a substantial number of security personnel on the INEC premises, including members of the Nigeria Police Force. Preparations are in full swing for their deployment across the state’s 30 local government areas.
Election stakeholders such as civil society organizations, journalists, and election observers are already on-site, ensuring everything is set for the exercise. The Resident Electoral Commissioner, Oluwatoyin Babalola, is reportedly meeting with National Commissioners and supporting RECs from other states as final arrangements for the election are being finalized.
The election will take place in 3,763 polling units across 332 wards in the 30 local government areas. On Thursday, INEC announced that over 1.9 million permanent voter cards (PVCs) had been collected for the Osun governorship election. According to Mohammed Haruna, INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, this figure stems from a total of 2,339,233 registered voters in the state. Of these, 1,906,390 PVCs, representing 81.50%, have been collected, while the remaining 426,842 PVCs, or 18.50%, have been securely stored with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), adhering to the Commission’s usual protocol.
Additionally, some individuals who experienced damage, defacement, or loss of their PVCs have applied for replacements. A total of 6,101 applicants have printed downloadable versions of their PVCs, as noted by the Commission.
