Sequel to the successful conduct of the Training of Supervisory Presiding Officers in preparation for Ekiti State Governorship Election scheduled to hold on 18th June, 2022, the Training of Presiding Officers (POs) and Assistant Presiding Officers (APO) on Polling and Counting Procedures commenced on Friday June 3, 2022.
The 3 days Training is organized by the Electoral Institute and the objective of the training is that at the end, participants should demonstrate the ability to conduct Polling and Counting Procedures and effectively perform the electoral functions of PO/APO in line with the 2022 Guidelines and Regulations for the conduct of Elections.
Participants at the training are mainly Corp Members (NYSC) serving in the State. Others include ex-Corp Members and final year students of federal tertiary Institutions.
The Training will focus on Polling Date and Time, Code of Conduct of Electoral Officials, Electoral Materials, Sorting, Counting and Announcement of Results.
Filling of form EC8A, an extensive hands-on-practical of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), Uploading the Result to iREV (INEC Result viewing portal) and the INEC Security Alert and Notification System (INEC-SANS) application designed to provide real time notification on threats and violence against INEC staff on Election duty offices or INEC Offices and facilities would also be discussed
The Director General of the Electoral Institute, Dr. Sa'ad Umar Idris in his Goodwill Message urged participants to pay due attention in the course of the training and to ask questions where necessary, while stressing the need for participants to have good working knowledge of the BVAS for accreditation of voters so as to ensure voter satisfaction in the process. The DG further advised participants to be above board.
The Chair, BEI in a similar Goodwill message through the coordinating trainers stressed the importance of PO/APO Training being the level of training where the polling unit personnel are prepared for election day duties.
He drew the attention of participants that their level of knowledge and understanding of election process and procedure and mastery of the BVAS is the main determinant that can make or mar the election.
He specifically encouraged the participants to pay special attention during the practical simulation of the BVAS being a new technology introduced by the Commission to ensure credibility of Elections
The training is ongoing in all the 16 Local Government Areas in the Ekiti State and is monitored by Director Training, Dr Binta Kasim Mohammed, Director, Research and Documentation, Dr. Ibrahim Sani and other Management staff of the Electoral Institute (TEI).
Highlights of the Training from across the Local Government Areas: