By Vincess Okushi
The Independent National Electoral Commission says it is mobilizing every national asset, including the Nigerian Air Force in the February 3rd, 2024 bye-elections to achieve results.
Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu disclosed this during a visit to the Chief of Air Staff on Monday 29th January 2024 in Abuja.
Mahmood while admonishing that the law empowers the Commission to seek the support of the security, intelligence, and law enforcement agencies in the delivery of materials and the protection of election officials said the neutrality and professionalism of the NAF in particular the armed forces in discharging their responsibilities in airlifting all necessary materials cannot be overemphasized, hence the need for more engagements.
The elections are held this weekend. Working with the Central Bank of Nigeria, materials are being delivered to many locations. However, given the size and distance of some constituencies, we seek the support of NAF to expeditiously deliver materials to three locations in the North East, South East, and SOUTHWEST geo-political zones of the country. In handling such a huge national assignment, the Commission cannot do it alone. We have already indicated to the Chief of the Air Staff the specific locations and the tonnage of materials to be airlifted.
The evacuation of the materials from the focal airports to the States where the election will be held will be handled by the Commission and the Central Bank of Nigeria as has been the standard practice. Thereafter, the inspection and movement of all materials to the various Local Government Areas and beyond will be done with the full participation of all stakeholders, particularly agents of political parties and candidates, observers, and the media in a transparent manner.
Responding to the delegation, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar while commending the giant stride of the commission in promoting democratic governance in Nigeria assured of the NAF’s long-standing unwavering support to the INEC and appealed for the clearing of some outstanding bills in the past election to enable them to perform optimally.
The relationship between the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and your organization has been anchored on shared objectives geared towards ensuring that good governance, stability, and the rule of law reign throughout all the corners of Nigeria. We, therefore, see your visit to us today as a sign of your commitment to strengthening the bonds between both organizations.
The successful conduct of elections is largely hinged on robust security and well-choreographed logistics supply chain management. The Nigerian Air Force has been INEC’s dependable partner in providing security in addition to rapid airlift for the distribution of sensitive and non-sensitive electoral materials across the country.
At the moment, our C-130s are currently undergoing maintenance but we have other aircraft that can be employed to move sensitive materials. The caveat is that we need to move those materials a little earlier due to the capacity of the airplanes that we have available.
I would like to seize this opportunity to remind the Chairman that some outstanding bills are yet to be cleared by INEC. The settlement of those bills will enable us to serve you better.
