The Plateau State Government on Wednesday extended the public holiday in the state by one day to enable local government elections hold.
This comes following delays and technical issues that forced the Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission to extend voting time by two hours, from 3 pm to 5 pm on Wednesday.
The extension aimed to ensure that no eligible voter was disenfranchised while tight security was maintained across the state. The election was relatively peaceful.
Eleven political parties and their candidates ran for office in nearly 300 wards in 17 local governments, with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Labour Party among the leading competitors.
On Monday, Governor Caleb Mutfwang proclaimed Wednesday, October 9, a work-free day to allow citizens to vote.
However, the election began late on Wednesday in most polling stations due to technological issues across the LGs.
This circumstance caused the electoral board to extend voting hours from 3 to 5 p.m.
The technological concerns with the Voter Verification System in some polling units were eventually rectified when presiding officers returned to manual registers in the impacted locations.
The Chairman of PLASIEC, Plangji Cishak, has earlier promised that the commission will employ the VVS to conduct the elections.
Mrs. Koro Yakubu, PLASIEC’s Head of Media, said in a statement on Wednesday that the extension was necessary due to unforeseen challenges in some areas, such as the late arrival of sensitive materials.
She told voters that the commission was working to address the issue and guarantee that all materials were properly distributed so that they could exercise their franchise.
“The election, which was scheduled for 8 am to 3 pm, has now been extended by two hours and is expected to conclude by 5 PM in the affected polling units,” the statement read.
Following the delay and extension of voting hours, the Plateau State administration declared an extension of the work-free day to allow citizens to return to their homes.
According to a statement made on Wednesday by the SSG, Jatau, the public holiday has been extended to Thursday to allow individuals who travelled for the local government elections to return.
The statement, signed on his behalf by the Permanent Secretary for Policy and General Services, Mary Fom, read: “His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Caleb Mannaseh Mutfwang, has approved that Thursday, October 10, 2024, be declared a public holiday to enable citizens who travelled for the local government elections to return. The Executive Governor further thanks citizens for their peaceful conduct during the exercise.”
