Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has appealed to political parties and candidates contesting in Saturday’s Anambra governorship election to abide by the Peace Accord signed ahead of the polls.
The call was made by Prof. Joash Amupitan, INEC Chairman, following the signing of the accord on Thursday in Awka. The ceremony was organised by the National Peace Committee (NPC), chaired by former Nigerian Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd).
Amupitan urged candidates to demonstrate their commitment to peaceful elections, stressing that their actions would determine whether the process is free, fair and credible.
“Peace is not guaranteed by signing documents, but by honouring commitments,” he said. “Without peace, election logistics will suffer, personnel will be at risk, and the entire process will lose credibility.”
He said that INEC had undertaken extensive preparations to ensure a smooth poll, including the deployment of 24,000 staff across 5,718 polling units, 326 ward collation centres, and 21 local government centres in Anambra State.
The commission, he added, had finalised a register of 2.8 million eligible voters, with Permanent Voter Card (PVC) collection extended to 2 November to encourage full participation.
Amupitan further revealed that 45,000 police officers and 10,250 NSCDC personnel would be deployed to provide election security under the coordination of the Inter-agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
He noted that similar peace accord initiatives in other states had reduced tensions and contributed to credible outcomes.
“Let us make Anambra an example of unity, hope and democratic resilience,” he said, urging all parties to ensure that their supporters act responsibly throughout the process.
INEC reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, fairness and adherence to international best practices, expressing optimism that the upcoming election would be peaceful and credible.
