For reasons attributed to poor network service in electronic transmission of results from polling units and wards during the November 11, 2023, governorship election in Bayelsa state, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that it will transmit the results of the elections manually.
This is to say that the results will not be electronically transmitted or uploaded to the INEC portal, as was done in some previous elections.
This development was made known by Mr. Obo Effanga, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Bayelsa State, during an interactive session with faith-based organisations and religious leaders in Yenagoa, the state capital, on Wednesday, October 4, 2023.
He said that the decision was based on the peculiar terrain and network challenges in the state, which could affect the electronic transmission of results. Effanga assured the stakeholders that INEC was ready to conduct a free, fair, and credible election and urged them to advise their candidates and supporters to be peaceful and law-abiding.
One of the religious leaders, Rev. Joseph Belema, commended INEC for its preparations and readiness for the election. He also called on the candidates not to see the election as a do-or-die affair but as an opportunity to serve the people of Bayelsa State