The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) disclosed a total number of 4,104 polling units available in Adamawa State for vote casting in 2023.
The new total will comprise existing 2,609 polling units and 1,495 voting points being converted into polling units.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) gave the indications on Wednesday, saying the conversion of the voting points to full-fledged polling units is going on currently.
Adamawa State Resident Commissioner of INEC, Kassim Gaidam, delivering his Welcome Address at a stakeholders interactive session in Yola, said converted VPs would be moved from the vicinities of PUs where they currently exist to outer locations where they would serve residents better.
He explaijed that conversion of VPs and relocation especially to new settlement areas was meant to enhance booth level voter access.
He explained, “In Adamawa State there are 1,495 VPs to be converted to PUs. The objective is to decongest booths with many VPs and address the big challenge of poor turnout or voter aparty during elections by locating such PUs in public buildings nearest to the people who are either unserved or undeserved.”
He also told representatives of interest groups who attended the INEC stakeholders meeting, “Our officers have been in the field locating PUs using maps and GPS coordinates with the view to converting all VPs already known to you into PUs.
“Recall that during the 2019 elections, we had 1,973,083 registered voters spread among 2,609 PUs and 1,495 VPs. With this exercise, the state will have 4,104 full-fledged PUs.”
According to him, after all VPs have become PUs, “focus will be on commencement of the continuous voter registration scheduled for June 28.”
He assured that all plans for the registration exercise are completed and urged those who have reached 18 years, those who wish to transfer their registration, those with mutilated PVCs and those who have never registered before, to be ready for registration.
