The Independent National Electoral Commission in Gombe has embarked on voter education and enlightenment programme for women and other disadvantaged groups which are aimed at enhancing their level of participation in electoral process.
The state Electoral Commissioner Barr Kassim Gaidam disclosed while speaking at a workshop and kickoff of awareness campaign organised by the commission in Gombe Yesterday. He expressed that the programme was organised to serve the best interest of the commission in reaching out to such group of people even at the grass roots.
He said, women constitute more than half of the population in the state but they constitute only 42% of the registered voters in the state. He said that the commission is bent on playing its own part within the provision of electoral law to ensure that every group in the society is given the chance to exercise their fundamental rights.
According to him, the commission has currently introduced Publicity Braille Materials for voter education for the visually impaired, he said the visually impaired would be allowed to be aided by other people they trust on election day. Meanwhile in complementing the use of Smart Card Readers for the disabled he said, Incidence Report Form have been introduced to be used by those who’s finger prints have been erased or those without fingers to use their toes.
While calling on the people to get their PVCs, Gaidam also expressed that, the commission has so far distributed 1,067,886 PVCs in the state as at March 5th 2015. While he lamented that, 68,284 PVCs are yet to be collected in mostly Gombe and Akko local governments of the state.
He said, the commission has recorded tremendous success through its various programmes in terms of mobilising the women to engage in electoral process. Adding that recently INEC has approved grants to voter education and publicity materials to assist them in sensitizing people at the grass roots.
