TEI/INEC Trains POs, APOs on Polling and Counting Procedures 

Oru Leonard 

Sequel to successful conduct of the Training of Supervisory Presiding Officers (SPOs) in preparation for the KOGI State Governorship Election scheduled to hold on the 11th November 2023, the Training of Presiding Officers (POs) and Assistant Presiding Officers (APO) on Polling and Counting Procedures commenced on Friday October 20, 2023.

The 3 days Training was organized by the Electoral Institute and the objective of the training is that at the end, participants should demonstrate the ability to conduct Polling and Counting Procedures and effectively perform the electoral functions of PO/APO in line with the 2022 Guidelines and Regulations for the conduct of Elections.
Participants at the training are mainly Corp Members serving in the State. Others include ex-Corp Members and final year students of federal tertiary Institutions.

*The Training focused on Polling Date and Time, Code of Conduct of Electoral Officials, Electoral Materials, Sorting, Counting and Announcement of Results. Filling of form EC8A, an extensive hands-on-practical of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), Uploading the Result to iREV (INEC Result viewing portal) and the INEC Security Alert and Notification System (INEC-SANS) application designed to provide real time notification on threats and violence against INEC staff on Election duty offices or INEC Offices and facilities would also be discussed*

The training was structured to assist participants to navigate and use the *INEC E-School* alongside the *TEI/INEC Bot* This is to familiarize trainees with the platforms which also contain the complete E-Manual and other training resources.

Day 2 of the training focused on using the hardcopy of the Manual for Election Officials 2023 along with the e-Platforms for the training of all POs and APOs providing a virtual option for capacity building of participants.
While the 3rd day of training would focus on the Practicals and Simulation on the processes and procedures on Election day activities using the BVAS and also simulation and exercises on filling EC8A, EC40H. Discussion will also center on EC25B and EC40G(PU) in line with the Margin of Lead principle as contained in the newly designed Training Workbook.

The Chairman, Board of Electoral Institute, Prof. Abdullahi Abdu Zuru in his goodwill message urged the participants to be above board as Poll Officials and expressed hope of an excellent performance of Poll Officials deployed by the Commission for the forthcoming Governorship election.

High points of the of Training was the monitoring visit of the DG, TEI to Kogi State.

During this visit, Dr. Sa’ad Umar Idris underscored the critical role of innovation in the electoral process. He shed light on the technological advancements that are being harnessed to equip election officials with the necessary skills and knowledge for a seamless election. These include the INEC Training BoT, a sophisticated platform that facilitates training and knowledge sharing, the INEC e-school platform, designed for comprehensive learning, INEC SANs, and a myriad of other innovative solutions. He asserted that these technological innovations play a pivotal role in ensuring that election officials are well-prepared to handle their roles effectively.

One of the most notable aspects of the visit was DG’s highlight if the Commission’s commitment to promoting inclusivity in the electoral process. He took a proactive step by involving Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) as trainers. This action aligns with INEC’s policy of inclusivity, ensuring that everyone, regardless of their abilities, has a role to play in the democratic process.

During the visit, the DG dedicated time to listen and observe the training sessions conducted by PWD trainers. This hands-on approach reaffirmed the importance of their role in shaping a more inclusive and well-prepared election process. It highlighted that INECs resolve on inclusivity was not just on paper but a commitment to fulfill its inclusivity policy.

The DG further urged participants to pay due attention in the course of the training and to ask questions where necessary, while stressing the need for participants to have good working knowledge of the BVAS for accreditation of voters so as to ensure voter satisfaction in the process. He expressed the desire to see participants engage the INEC E- School and the INEC TRAINING BoT recently developed by the Commission.

He further advised participants to be above board while on Election duty as POs/APOs so as to ensure free, fair, credible and inclusive 2023 Kogi State Governorship Election.

The training is ongoing in training centres across the 21 Local Government Areas in Kogi State.

Highlights of the training from across the Local Government Areas: