Rerun polls: Time for INEC to rethink strategies

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the weekend conducted the rerun election in Rivers State which largely turned out inconclusive, prompting the urgent need for the electoral body to rethink of its strategies before the next round of polls, particularly the 2019 general election.

The electoral body had before Saturday restated its preparedness for the rerun poll to fill the vacant 3 senatorial seats, 12 House of Representatives seats and 22 House of Assembly seats in the state.
Sadly, and despite the deployment of thousands of security operatives and the huge amount spent, INEC’s performance during the exercise was less than impressive. Electoral materials arrived late at several polling stations while the card reader malfunctioned at some centres. Some officials of the electoral body were alleged to have been compromised by the contending parties in the poll.

While the poll results were being awaited, the electoral umpire, on Sunday, announced the cancellation of the exercise in eight local government areas in the state, saying the action was due to irregularities noticed during the poll at the affected LGAs.

As people were still coming to terms with the cancellation of the exercise in the eight LGAs, INEC on Monday put on hold further announcement of results of the poll in the other council areas excluding the one federal and nine state constituencies whose results were earlier released by the commission.
With the suspension, the fate of the results now hangs in the balance, prolonging the tension in the state. The cancellation of the poll in the eight council areas also means that the electorate will again be called out for another round of voting whenever INEC deems fit.

This is the third time in a row that rerun elections conducted by INEC after the 2015 general elections has failed to produce conclusive results. Though it is easy for INEC to blame the desperation of the contending parties in the rerun polls so far conducted by it across the country for the way the elections eventually turned out, fact is that its performance has been uninspiring to say the least.

There is therefore need for the electoral umpire to reevaluate its strategies. The commission should ensure that going forward, it does not take the nation into other rounds of elections whose outcome will remain unknown days and weeks after voting ended, creating more tension in the land.