Following a review meeting with stakeholders, the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) announced that voter registration has been extended in Edo and Ondo states.
Registration was earlier slated to end on the 5th of June, 2024 in the two states.
However, in response to stakeholder requests, the commission announced that the deadline has been extended from Thursday, June 6th to Sunday, June 9th, 2024, to allow more eligible individuals to register.
Similarly, the commission extended the exercise’s duration from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. every day.
Furthermore, it stated that the number of centres has been raised beyond 397 wards, and that the two state offices in Benin City and Akure now comprise all 36 Local Government offices of the commission.
“More machines will also be deployed to areas identified to have peculiar needs such as difficult terrain or communal issues,” the statement partly said.
Like the ward registration centres, INEC explained that the detailed information on the names and location addresses of the LGA offices, have also been uploaded on its websites and social media platforms for the guidance of registration in the two states.
Meanwhile, the commission said the exercise is progressing in the two states.
It said, “As of Monday, 3rd June 2024, eight days after the commencement of the CVR, a cumulative of 120, 1458 new voters have registered. Of this figure, 55, 861 (46.4%) are male, while 120, 458 (53.6%) are female,”
It added that the majority of the 82, 003 registered voters, representing 68.8 per cent, are youth between the ages of 18-34 years.
In terms of occupation, 43, 419 or 36.8 per cent are students, while 812, 0.67 per cent, are persons with disability.
It, however, noted that the figures were preliminary, adding that the final figures will be published on a state basis and for all categories of registration at the end of the exercise, and after data clean-up, using Automated Biometric Identified System (ABIS).