The House of Representatives Committee on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has urged the electoral body to relocate its offices from local government areas (LGAs) to more neutral locations across the country. This resolution comes in the wake of a motion put forward by Hon. Sunday Nnamchi, who argued that moving INEC offices out of local government areas to neutral grounds would help safeguard the integrity of the electoral process.
The motion, which was referred to the Committee on INEC, prompted a public hearing at the National Assembly Complex. During the session, the committee’s chairman, Adebayo Balogun, emphasized the importance of INEC establishing its offices in neutral zones. He expressed that the relocation would be essential in ensuring transparency and protecting the electoral system from undue influence.
“There needs to be a collaborative effort between INEC, committee members, and state governors to acquire land for this purpose. We must place this issue at the forefront of discussions to ensure it is addressed,” Balogun stated. He acknowledged that raising awareness and generating pressure would be key to pushing the initiative forward. He expressed gratitude for the motion, admitting that he was previously unaware of the issue, even in major urban areas such as Lagos. He cited examples like Alimosho, Apapa, Oshodi, and Eti-Osa, areas where the current locations of INEC offices were deemed problematic and needed urgent resolution.
In response, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of INEC, discussed the challenges the commission faces in choosing appropriate locations for its offices. He explained that urbanization has affected many of the commission’s office sites, making some locations more prone to security risks. For example, the INEC office in Abeokuta South had become surrounded by shops, which raised concerns about the safety of its operations. He shared that a security breach, potentially involving the throwing of a device, led to the burning of the local government office.
Yakubu emphasized that while INEC does not want its offices situated in the middle of highly built-up areas, it must also avoid locating them too far away, as this could complicate accessibility and increase security risks on election days. “We must find a balance between accessibility and safety. We are considering the need to relocate some of our offices, and in places like Abeokuta, we have already moved to more secure locations. However, we are not always fortunate enough to have alternate spaces available in other regions,” he concluded.
This discussion reflects a growing awareness of the need to modernize and secure the locations of INEC offices, ensuring that they are both safe and conducive to conducting free and fair elections across the country.
