The ruling All Progressives Congress on Thursday said that its National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, was quoted out of context concerning his position on the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System by the Independent National Electoral Commission for the 2023 general election.
Adamu had expressed reservation over the deployment of electronic transmission of results technology when a Commonwealth delegation on the 2023 general election paid a courtesy call on him at the party secretariat on Wednesday.
The former Nasarawa governor said unless INEC was prepared to assure the ruling party and Nigerians that they were 100 per cent ready, its proposed use of the technology would be shrouded in doubt.
Adamu’s fear was re-echoed by the party’s National Organising Secretary, Suleiman Argungu, who identified unstable power supply as one of the obstacles facing the innovation.
Argungu also used his home state, Kebbi, as an example of an area where such technology could experience some hitches.
But barely 24 hours after their statements, the National Publicity Secretary of the ruling party, Felix Morka, announced that the national chairman was misquoted.
Morka stated that much as Adamu had tasked INEC on its readiness to deploy the technology, the party remained committed to the highest level of electoral transparency.
His statement read, “A section of the media is awash with comments credited to the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, on the deployment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System and the Results Viewing Portal, otherwise known as electronic transmission of election results, for the 2023 general election.
“Media reports that chairman Adamu kicked against INEC’s decision to deploy BVAS and electronic transmission of results is patently false, and constitutes an unfair misrepresentation of the National Chairman’s comments.
“At a meeting with the Commonwealth pre-election delegation yesterday, Wednesday, November 23, 2022, in response to a question regarding the country’s preparations for next year’s election, the National Chairman noted that, while preparations were in top gear, he tasked INEC to take effective steps to bridge any gaps that may be created by electricity and telecommunications network challenges in certain outlying voting districts in the country in order to ensure a smooth and successful deployment of BVAS and other technologies to ensure free and transparent elections.”
Morka further argued that the APC administration of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), midwifed the successful reform of the Electoral Act, and BVAS, among other technological innovation and has superintended the conduct of credible, free, fair and transparent elections in Edo, Anambra, Ekiti and Osun States.
“Our Party and government remain committed to the highest levels of electoral transparency and democratic consolidation in our country,” he said.
