KDI identifies five LGAs as violence, intimidation hotspots ahead Ondo polls

• Oloniju asked INEC and all stakeholders to abide by the provisions of the Electoral Act and INEC’s guideline to deliver a fair, inclusive and credible election.
• He asked INEC and security agencies to allow election observers to have full access to the collation centres.

Kimpact Development Initiative, a non-governmental organisation, has pinpointed five LGAs in Ondo as potential hotspots for violence ahead of the off-cycle governorship election.

The affected LGAs are Akoko south-east, Êse-Odo, Ilaje, Idanre, and Ile-Oluji/Oke-Igbo.

The Ondo state governorship election is set to take place on Saturday.

In a statement released on Friday, Bukola Idowu, KDI executive director, emphasized the need for security agencies to scrutinize potential flashpoints and ensure sufficient deployment.

“These are potential flashpoints that we think security agencies need to look into and have adequate deployment. And most especially, either processes must be intact and must be adequate and must be top-notch in those areas,” he said.

“We are watching to see how that preparation will translate to the actual execution on election day. And then we are looking at that in like about four major areas.

“We don’t expect any issue around violence, but we expect that post-election issue should be handled differently and professionally.

“We are saying now that the security agencies and all stakeholders need to find a means of handling it well.”

Idowu commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for its impressive preparations for the election.

The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room also cautioned residents of Ondo against vote trading, warning that it will “mortgage good governance.”

Speaking at a pre-election conference in Akure, Franklin Oloniju, the co-convener of the Situation Room, stated that vote trading was illegal and would hinder the development of the state.

Oloniju urged voters to resist vote-buying temptations, adding that INEC and stakeholders must adhere to electoral laws and guidelines for a fair and credible election.

He added that INEC and security agencies should grant election observers unrestricted access to collation centers for transparency.