By Okey Ndiribe Abuja
In order to defuse the charged political atmosphere in Edo State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suspended a fresh  voters registration exercise ahead of the July 14 governorship election  scheduled to be held in the state.

This decision was announced yesterday by the Chairman of the Commission Prof. Attahiru Jega while addressing news men on the outcome of the meeting held between the commission and stakeholders in the forth-coming election.

Citing reasons why INEC took the decision which Jega stated had been accepted by all the political stakeholders who attended the meeting yesterday, he explained that  the commission had become worried over the charged political atmosphere in the state adding that there had also been many allegations and counter-allegations  by different candidates and political parties contesting the election. Said he: “Now in the past two weeks or so, INEC has received letters of complaint or petitions making wide-ranging allegations from the Governor Adams Oshiomhole who is the candidate of Action Congress of Nigeria for the forth-coming poll; the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Gen. Charles Arhiavbere(rtd); Edo State Secretariat of the PDP and two other petitions from unknown groups”.

According to the INEC boss: “…In view of the allegations and counter-allegations which have been made in the last two weeks on the preparations for the continuous voter registration exercise in Edo State, and given the weighty nature of some of these allegations and the need to thoroughly investigate them and take a firm decision regarding them well before the elections, the Commission has decided to postpone  the continuous voter registration exercise in Edo until after the elections so we can do it in an atmosphere devoid of suspicions and fears and so that we can focus on rebuilding confidence and preparing for free, fair, peaceful and credible elections”. Jega explained that  the commission  had decided to embark on continuous voter registration exercise in order to accommodate persons who had attained the age of 18 since the last registration of voters was conducted early last year.

Said he: “With regards to the continuous voters registration exercise which was to have commenced on May 15 2012, we planned that it should be  consistent with the Commission’s earlier decision oncontinuous voters registration in all states with pending rerun elections since April 2011 to give opportunity to those who have qualified since the last registration. Hence  we  did continuous voters registration in Kogi, Bayelsa, Adamawa, Sokoto and Kebbi states. “He further explained that the Commission could not do continuous voter registration before conducting the Cross River State rerun governorship election  because there was no time since the poll was shifted backwards adding that in Sokoto state even though the Commission conducted fresh voters registration in that state INEC could not utilise the fresh register because revision of the electoral time-table prevented the commission from publishing the new register within the legally permissible time-frame.

However, all the key political actors in the state who attended the meeting fixed by the INEC boss expressed satisfaction with its outcome.Speaking to journalists after the meeting with the INEC Chairman Oshiomhole had stated that: “ We have accepted the commission’s decision to postpone further registration of voters until after the election. We have also assured INEC that we would do everything to ensure that the principle of one man one vote stands”.In his own remarks concerning the outcome of the dialogue session with the leadership of INEC, Arhiavbere also endorsed the Commission’s decision.

The National Chairman of Labour Party Mr Dan Nwanyanwu and the  governorship candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples party (ANPP) Chief Solomon Edebiri who also attended the meeting expressed  also endorsed INEC’s decision.