Smart Card Readers configured to work only on election days, can’t be preloaded ― Oyo REC

RESIDENT Electoral Officer (REC), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Oyo State, Mr Mutiu Agboke has allayed fears of politicians outsmarting the electoral process, noting that the Smart Card Readers (SCRs) could not be preloaded because it had been configured to begin to function only on the two days of election, February 16 and March 2.

Agboke, who stated this on Tuesday, added that the commission boasted of enhanced SCRs, alongside Registration Area Technical Support (RATECH) members across wards, to fix technical issues that may arise using the SCRs on election day.

He urged voters who are first to get to polling centres to ascertain that SCRs are not preloaded, and would see that the count at the start of voting reads zero.

Speaking during a media interaction, held at INEC office, Ibadan, on the commission’s preparation for the election, Agboke stated that about 90 per cent of nonsensitive materials had been received at the state, with sensitive ones to be received next week.

ALSO READ: Don’t allow politicians use your children for electoral violence ― Ajimobi

Meanwhile, statistics of candidates and parties in the state shows that 60 candidates will be vying for three senatorial seats, 202 candidates will vie for 14 House of Representatives seats, while 32 house of Assembly seats will be contested for by 654 candidates.

While noting that 846,417 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) remained uncollected, Agboke said collection will end on February 8 and locked up with the Central Bank of Nigeria.

He rubbished notions that INEC will trade uncollected PVCs with politicians, noting that PVCs won’t be sold under any form of pressure and that the commission will not compromise.