The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has formally confirmed the postponement of the 2019 presidential and national Assembly elections previous scheduled to hold Saturday, February, 16, 2019 as well as the governorship and state houses of Assembly elections to March 9 from the initial March 2.
Briefing newsmen keeping vigil at the INEC headquarters in Abuja, at about 2:30am, the commission’s chairman, Mahmud Yakubu said “proceeding with the election as scheduled is no longer feasible”, saying that the Presidential and National Assembly elections has been moved to February 23, 2019 while the governorship and state assembly elections were also moved by one week to March 9, 2019.
Earlier, Rotimi Oyekanmi, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC’s chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, had informed newsmen that the commission had taken a decision after the crucial meeting attended by the chairman and 12 national commissioners.
It would be recalled that as the news of the planned postponement of the general elections filtered into town, the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) debunked the reports making rounds that the body was planning to postpone the elections.
The National Commissioner for Voter Education and Publicity at INEC, Festus Okoye, told Daily Post on Friday night that Nigerians should ignore the rumours and come out to exercise their civic responsibility.
Asked to respond to information that INEC commissioners were in a meeting, Okoye opined: “Yes we are in a meeting but we have not taken such decision. “We are in an election period, and as commissioners we have to meet every time”.
