By Umar Muhammad Puma
The group Youth Initiative Advocacy Growth and Advancement (YIAGA) has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to concentrate more on awareness to avoid voter apathy on day of the election, ahead of the Anambra governorship polls.
Briefing journalists on the November 19 Anambra election, the group expressed concern that INEC and the National orientation agency (NOA) have not done enough on voters sensitization in Anambra state.
YIAGA’s Executive Director, Samson Itodo, who spoke during the briefing in Abuja, remarked that it was unfortunate that there is no concrete evidence of voters’ education in the form of fliers, billboards, banners, and radio and television programmes in the state in spite of huge budgetary provisions for the purpose.
He further claimed that it was observed that voter education programmes and messaging targeted at special interest and marginalized groups like women and persons with disabilities (PWDs) was nonexistent in the state.
Chairman of the group, Hussein Abdu, allayed the fear that the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) could disrupt the poll.
Describing Anambra state as a very peaceful state, he observed that the rise on political campaigns across the twenty one area councils of the state were clear indicator of citizens enthusiasm on the poll.
He also disclosed that there was minimal use of derogatory languages against candidates on the basis of their gender, age and faith.
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