By Joy Odor
The Director-General of the Electoral Institute (DG TEI), Dr. Sani Umar Idris has stressed the importance of the deployment of the Election Violence Mitigation and Advocacy Tool (EVMAT) in all elections by the Commission, including the FCT Area Council Election in identifying hotspots and violent prone areas during elections.
He stated this in his virtual welcome address during the Methodology Workshop on the deployment of Election Violence Mitigation and Advocacy Tool (EVMAT) for Field workers towards the 12th February, 2023 FCT Area Council Election in Abuja.
The DG TEI pointed that that the EVMAT TOOL was successfully deployed in previous Governorship Elections in Edo, Ondo and recently Anambra Governorship Election.
Dr Idris urged the participants to gather credible and reliable data by doing their field work with the highest level of integrity, transparency and professionalism. He admonished participants to justify the confidence reposed in them by the Commission.
Also in his Goodwill message, the Resident Electroal Commissioner (REC) FCT, Alhaji Yahaya Bello enjoined the particpants to stay focused during the workshop as all eyes are on the FCT Area Coucil Election and people will use it to judge the commission as it prepares for the forthcoming Ekiti, Osun, and indeed the 2023 General Elections.
The REC highlighted that some of the violence recorded during the previous elections in FCT had several other tiggers not politicians alone as is often assumed.
“Indeed, there were instances where voters’ actions at the polls have contributed to the outbreak of violence” he said.
Alhaji Bello highlighted the activities of banditry and kidnappings from neighbouring States like Kogi, Niger, and Nassarawa may be the likely causes of electoral violence in FCT and challenged all participants to be good ambassadors of the Commission.
The REC appreciated the DG TEI for inviting him most especially as the EVMAT Workshop concerns the February 12th scheduled FCT Area Coucil Election.
In his opening remarks, the Chairman, Board of the Electoral Institute (BEI), Professor Abdullahi Abdu Zuru addressed participants on the importance of information in research and survey in solving problems which he categories into two such as…..
1. Resource knowledge also known as information, is primarily used in gathering data about where violence is presumed to occur.
2. Processing of data collected. from the field must be processed and used to prevent and mitigate election violence.
Professor Zuru noted that Quality Assurance is key/important. This will enable the Commission to follow up not necessarily because the Commission did not trust the field Agents but for the sake of quality assurance.
The BEI Chairman therefore drew the attention of all the participants that EVMAT Tool is being deployed by the Commission as a tool: i) for saving lives,
ii) for ensuring that election is free, fair, inclusive, credible and peaceful, iii) for helping election practitioners and election security stakeholders in curtailing, and mitigating election violence.
He also drew the attention of participants that the Commission counts on them for better results while welcoming them and extended the goodwill of the Chairman INEC Commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu to the participants.
