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Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege has assured Nigerians that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) will respect religious diversity by not fielding a presidential ticket with two people of the same religion in the 2023 presidential election.
He stated this on Thursday in Abuja when he hosted members of the Christian Association of Nigerian (CAN), led by its President, Rev. Dr. Samson Ayokunle.
Senator Omo-Agege charged all political parties to balance their presidential tickets among major faiths in Nigeria.
Responding to a call by the CAN president opposing all-Muslim and all-Christian presidential candidates and running mates in the next general election, Senator Omo-Agege stressed that the APC has always been mindful of that in its choice of candidates for elective and appointive positions.
He buttressed his argument with the 2015 APC primaries where the party averted a Muslim/Muslim presidential ticket.
While urging the Church to pray for leaders holding political offices at all times, the Deputy Senate President emphasized the need for religious bodies to use their platforms to enlighten Nigerians on the need to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
INEC’s meeting with leaders of political parties ahead of the polls in Anambra comes two days after a joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee met with the Commission.
At the forum, Senate Committee Chairman on INEC, Senator Kabiru Gaya, said the meeting became imperative because of the security situation in the state and its effect on the election outcome.
He stated that INEC has increased the polling units in Anambra from 4,608 to 5,720 to allow better accessibility by the electorate.
The fear, according to Senator Gaya, remains that there are possibilities that the violence currently rocking the state might mar the poll.
In his remarks, Professor Yakubu informed the lawmakers that the commission was prepared for the election scheduled to hold on November 6.
“We have successfully carried out 12 of the 14 activities we should do, the only outstanding activities are on the last day of campaigns by political parties which are going to be in the next eight days, and the election proper on the 6th of November,” he said.
“We have recovered from the series of attacks on our facilities, and I am happy to say that we have deployed all relevant materials not only to Awka but all the Local Government Areas.
“We have trained the requisite number of ad-hoc staff for the election and we have also mobilised the transport owners for logistics. As far as INEC is concerned, we are prepared,” Professor Yakubu declared
