The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday commenced the distribution of the permanent voter card in Ekiti State in preparation for the June 21 Governorship election.
No fewer than 657,256 prospective voters are expected to collect their cards at the 2,195 polling units spread across the state during the three-day exercise that will end on March 9.
Commenting on the exercise, Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi, said he will not use the massive turnout of prospective voters for the collection of the cards as yardstick to measure the performance of INEC on the exercise.
He disclosed that the preliminary reports from across the state indicated that residents had turned out in large numbers for the exercise with INEC doing its best to attend to them.
Fayemi, who stated this in his Isan Ekiti countryhome in Oye local government while collecting his card alongside his wife, Erelu Bisi Fayemi at Ogiliolo unit 009 in the town, said he would reserve his comment till the end of the exercise on Sunday.
He said, “We decided to declare public holiday on Friday so that the people can turn up in all the units. So, the initial report, I mean very preliminary one, indicated high turnout in all the units. But this will not in any way make me begin to rate INEC high or pass comment. We had placed adverts and jingles on radio and television to sensitize the people.”
