Election materials printed locally, says INEC boss Yakubu

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has stated printing election materials locally since 2015 without recourse to printing abroad.

Chairman of the Commission, Prof Mahmoud Yakubu stated this on Thursday when the members of the Chartered Institute of Professional Printers paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.

Yakubu however noted that the commission has its own guidelines as well as the Public Procurement Act which makes the printing works time bound, noting that this makes it impossible to give their printing jobs to those who would sublet them.

He said the commission has been patronizing Nigerian printers,noting that the Institute’s ‘certification has been the baseline for giving out jobs.”

The chairman expressed delight at the quality of work and capacity of Nigerian printers and assured them that the commission would continue to partner with them and also continue to depend on their certification to ensure that only those certified by the institute get INEC’s jobs.

The president of the Institute, Mr Wahab Lawal noted that the printing industry has what it takes to move Nigeria forward, stating that Nigerian printers are over-equipped contrary to widely held belief.

He regretted however that 99 percent of materials used for printing were imported into the country and stated that papers deployed for INEC’s printing jobs should be made duty-free.

According to Lawal, many Nigerians now run to a country like India to print and bring back to Nigeria, a situation he said has worsened the rate of unemployment in the country.

He seeks cooperation with INEC in terms of capacity, security and cost, the president of the institute called for more patronage by the commission.