Sources at INEC say there are not enought ballot papers ahead of next month's elections. It was also gathered that INEC was considering contracting foreign printers since the Nigerian security printing and minting company seems not to have the capacity to meet the quantity required.
About 100m ballot papers are needed for the general elections and this means that INEC will have to look for alternatives outside the NSPMC in order to meet their target. Obviously this will mean a higher cost if foreign printers are to be contracted including the costs for freight and handling.
Recall that this was a challenge in 2007 where the ballot papers were not enough and not everyone had a fair chance of voting their preferred candidate. Ballot papers were printed in South Africa and arrived late and did not have serial numbers which aided rigging. As a result of this, voting did not take place in some areas
However press secretary to the INEC chairman, Kayode Idowu has denied the allegations and said everything remained on track to ensure a free and fair election.
“All of that is false; there are no problems with the ballot papers. The process is on course,” Mr. Idowu said.
Asked whether there were apprehensions as to the timely delivery of the papers, he said: “You know these are sensitive materials and they have to be treated with care. There are no apprehensions; the process is ongoing.”
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