The Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to make adequate provisions for the over two million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the State, ahead of the 2023 General Elections.
Ortom made the call at a roundtable discussion tagged, “Contemporary Security Challenges and their Effects on 2023 General Elections,” organised by the Platinum Post Newspaper on Tuesday, in Abuja.
The Governor, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Millennium Development Goals, Prof. Magdalene Dura said INEC should create polling units at IDPs’ camps and also engage its members as ad-hoc staff during elections.
Ortom said this will ensure credibility of the elections at such centres while giving them a sense of belonging.
“There is need for government and INEC to ensure credibility of the electoral process,” he said.
The Governor expressed concerns over the fate of over two million IDPs in his State who have been rendered homeless as a result of insurgency.
Ortom therefore, appealed to the Federal Government to come to the assistance of IDPs in Benue as it is doing to other IDPs in other parts of the Country.
He said; “There is lack of equity and justice in Nigeria. INEC needs to have comprehensive data on the IDPs so that they can create polling units for IDPs.”