The Independent National Electoral Commission in Lagos State has begun training of about 1,000 Supervisory Presiding Officers in preparation for the forthcoming general elections.
Mr Femi Akinbiyi, the INEC Public Relations Officer in Lagos State, disclosed to this on Thursday in an interview.
According to Akinbiyi, the three-day training, which started on Wednesday, was a step taken by the commission to conduct flawless elections on February 16 and March 2.
“As part of preparations for the 2019 general elections, about 1,000 SPOs commenced training on Wednesday.
“These Supervisory Presiding Officers will in turn train both the Presiding Officers and Assistant Presiding Officers.
“The commission is not leaving any stone unturned in its preparations for the elections; we will do everything humanly possible to deliver on our mandate,” said Akinbiyi.
He advised political gladiators to shun the do-or-die approach to politics.
According to him, the commission will commence a workshop for security personnel on Friday to ensure that INEC staff and security agents operate “on the same page, on the election days”.
He said that the training became imperative for security agents to know the nitty-gritty of the electoral process, adding that they must understand the “dos and don’ts” of elections.
Akinbiyi called on eligible voters yet to collect their permanent voter cards to do so before February 8, to be able to vote.
“We are still distributing the cards to their owners at INEC offices in each of the 20 local government areas in the state.
“We will be there until February 8, when it will be suspended until after the elections.” he said.
