IT responsible for success of 2015 elections – INEC

 The Independent National Electoral Commission said on Monday in Abuja that the successful conduct of the 2015 general elections was due to its ability to deploy technology for the exercise.

The Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, stated this when he received a delegation of Benin Electoral Commission, led by the Beninoise Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr. Onyedipo Falaye.

He said INEC would assist Benin electoral commission to develop its Information Technology towards next year’s general election in that country.

The Benin Republic general election holds on February 28, 2016.

Yakubu said, “The changes that made the 2015 election a success was IT, beginning with voter registration, collation and transmission of results.”

He promised that INEC would share the experiences and ideas that enabled it to succeed in the last general elections with members of Benin Republic Electoral Commission.

He appealed to his guests not to joke with the issue of security, which he said “is necessary for free and fair election.’’

He said, “INEC succeeded in formulating the security system. We have inter-agency committee on security both at national and down to local government level. There are representatives of Army, the police and other security agencies, and the security meeting is held on regular basis.

“There is no free and fair election where there is insecurity.”

Falaye, in his speech, said the delegation was in INEC “to understudy the secret behind the success” of the commission in the last general elections. He called for cooperation and capacity building between the two commissions.

He commended INEC on the success of last general elections and said Benin Electoral Commission wanted to take it to higher level.