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BVAS On Trial As INEC Conducts Mock Accreditation Nationwide
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC has said the mock accreditation of voters expected to take place across 436 polling units nationwide was principally aimed at test running the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS.
The trial mock will set the ground for hitch-free conduct of the February 25 and March 11 elections, according to Festus Okoye, National Commissioner and Chairman, INEC Information and Voter Education Committee.
He said polling units in urban, the semi-urban and some rural areas were selected to make the exercise inclusive.
This, he said, was because INEC will also want to test the efficacy of some of the networks in those areas for the upload of results from these polling units.
Okoye, who spoke in Abuja on Friday noted that technology will play an important role in the 2023 election.
He added that the polling units for the mock accreditation therefore were carefully selected to test the efficacy of the BVAS.
“INEC is fully ready to conduct the mock accreditation in all the PUs where this exercise will take place.
“All our Resident Electoral Commissioners are aware of the exercise and in conjunction with the Electoral Officers they harvested these Pus where this exercise will take place.
“We selected some Pus in the urban areas, someone the semi-urban areas and some in rural areas because we also want to test the efficacy of some of the networks we are using for results upload in these pulling units.
“We are fully ready for the exercise and the people in the affected PUs have been sensitise that there will be mock accreditation in their PUs,” he said.
He said that the exercise would be purely for accreditation without voting, from 8.30 a. m to 2.30pm.
“Immediately after the exercise we are going to sponge the data on our BVAS and reconfigure them for the purpose of 2023 general election,” Okoye said.
He added that all national commissioners would be deployed to monitor the exercise, saying that while some would move from one state to another, others would remind in the various states they supervised.
“Nigerians should cooperate with our officers that are going to carry out this mock accreditation and also get ready to exercise their democratic franchise on the days of these elections.
“One of the things that we have decided to do is to ensure that we test run the device by conducting a mock accreditation exercise.
“We have announced that this exercise is going to happen on Saturday, Feb. 4, meaning it is going to happen this weekend. So once again, I seize the opportunity of this visit to appeal to Nigerians to please go to the designated polling units,” he said.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu said that in the unlikely event of challenges, INEC had time between the conclusion of the exercise and the general election to respond to the challenges.
“But we are very happy with the functionality of the machines so far, particularly the tests carried out on the number of machines received in preparation for the general election,” he said.
Sources: NAN
The Northern Elders Forum (NEF), on Saturday, issued a 14-day ultimatum to the Edo State Government and the Federal Government following the brutal mob attack that led to the killing of innocent Northern hunters in Uromi, Edo State.
The victims were reportedly returning home to celebrate the end of Ramadan and Eid Kabir with their families when they were attacked.
NEF spokesperson, Professor Abubakar Jika Jiddere, in a statement, condemned the killings as “barbaric, extra-judicial, and cowardly,” calling for urgent action to address the situation.
He said: “The North has tolerated numerous such animalistic and cannibalistic acts of recklessness from some Southern part of Nigeria in the past. This must come to an end.
“The North will take stringent action in response to this inhumane attack on its peace-loving people. Consequently, the NEF hereby demands the following immediate actions from the authorities in Edo State and the Federal Government.
“The swift recovery of the bodies of the victims and their dignified transfer to their families for an honorable and befitting burial in accordance with their respective faiths. The arrest and trial of all individuals responsible for the attack and the brutal killings of the innocent travellers.”
The forum also demands a public prosecution of the perpetrators and those that aided the crime to ensure full transparency and accountability.
He add, “The due payment of compensation to the families of the victims, in line with the prescribed standards of their respective faiths. An unreserved apology from the people and authorities of Edo State, with a commitment to ensuring that such barbaric behavior never occurs again.
“An unreserved apology from the Edo State Government to the North for this heinous attack on its people. The punishment of the perpetrators must be witnessed by the public to serve as a deterrent to any such future acts of violence.
“The NEF demands that the Edo State Government and the Federal Government take concrete and visible steps to fulfill these demands within fourteen (14) days from the date of this release. Failure to do so will compel the North to take all necessary actions to seek justice for her people and the North.
“The Federal Government must ensure that justice is served to the victims and their families to preserve peace, stability, and the peaceful coexistence of all Nigerians.”
The NEF urged Northern communities to remain calm and patient while it pursues the matter through the appropriate government agencies.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) yesterday stated that troops of Operation Delta Safe have sustained their operational tempo against crude oil thieves and other criminals in the Niger Delta, recording significant successes in their efforts to curb illicit activities in the region.
A statement by the Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Markus Kangye, revealed that troops recovered a substantial quantity of stolen crude oil, illegally refined AGO, and PMS, totalling 392,174 litres, 138,757 litres, and 830 litres, respectively.
He stated that the troops also discovered and destroyed 29 crude oil cooking ovens, 31 dugout pits, 48 boats, 21 storage tanks, 18 drums, and 16 illegal refining sites.
Additionally, they recovered various items, including pumping machines, drilling machines, tricycles, motorcycles, mobile phones and four vehicles.
The operation, according to General Kangye, resulted in the arrest of 11 oil thieves and other criminals, with assorted arms and ammunition, as well as dynamites, also being recovered.
In related developments, troops conducted successful offensive operations, arresting six criminals, including a suspected kidnapping kingpin, and recovering a locally made pistol and live cartridges.
The Director also stressed that troops rescued two kidnapped hostages and recovered a vehicle during counter-kidnapping and anti-criminality operations in Ndokwa West LGA of Delta State.
These successes, he said, demonstrate the effectiveness of Operation Delta Safe in combating crude oil theft and other criminal activities in the Niger Delta.
Meanwhile, troops of Operation Udo Ka foiled planned kidnapping and terrorism attacks in Anambra, Imo, and Abia states, arresting several suspects and rescuing kidnapped victims.
According to Kangye, “On 20 and 21 March 2025, troops conducted offensive operations in Igbariam Local Government Area of Anambra State and Owerri Municipal Local Government Area of Imo State, resulting in the arrest of three suspected terrorists/kidnappers and the rescue of four attempted kidnapped victims.”
He stated that troops also recovered arms and ammunition, including several Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and live cartridges, as well as a vehicle and tricycle.
He said that troops arrested many extremists in Imo and Enugu states, recovering one pump-action gun, live cartridges, and some quantities of illicit drugs.
Additionally, troops rescued a kidnapped victim in Ukwa East Local Government Area of Abia State, arresting the suspects and recovering a locally made pistol and a tricycle.
Also, troops of Operation Hadin Kai recorded significant successes against ISWAP/JAS terrorists in the North-east region.
Kangye said that between 21 and 26 March 2025, scores of terrorists, including adult males, females, and children, surrendered to troops following intense military operations.
He revealed that troops also conducted offensive operations in various locations, including Konduga, Gwoza, and Bama, resulting in the neutralisation of several terrorists, the apprehension of others, and the rescue of kidnapped hostages.
Afghanistan’s Taliban government released nearly 2,500 prisoners ahead of celebrations marking the end of Ramadan, the supreme court said on Saturday, in a country where the UN has warned of a growing prison population.
The exact number of prisoners held by various security bodies in Afghanistan is unclear, but a spokesman for the Office of Prison Administration (OPA) told AFP on Saturday between 11,000 and 12,000 convicted prisoners were in the authority’s custody.
Around the same number are in detention awaiting trial, sentencing or appeal, spokesman Mohamad Nasim Lalahand added.
The supreme court said on X that “2,463 prisoners who were eligible for amnesty were released, while 3,152 others received sentence reductions” as per a decree by the Taliban supreme leader.
The release of prisoners convicted of minor crimes is common practice ahead of the Eid al-Fitr holiday, expected to start on Sunday or Monday.
Last year, Taliban authorities released around 2,800 prisoners ahead of the end of Ramadan, local media reported.
Last October, the United Nations mission to Afghanistan, UNAMA, said it was informed by the OPA that the prison population was growing, “with more detainees admitted daily than are released”.
UNAMA warned of high volumes of arrests and lengthy jail-time sentences putting “unsustainable pressure on prison facilities”.