Headline
Missing Voter Names As CSO Releases Mock Accreditation Report
Published
1 year agoon
By
EditorA Civil Society Organisation, YIAGA Africa, has published its findings on the mock accreditation exercise recently conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission ahead of the general election.
INEC conducted the mock accreditation in some parts of the country on February 4.
Among the observations noted by YIAGA Africa was the issue of missing names on the voters’ register.
The CSO highlighted in its report its observations on the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices, uploading of result sheets to the viewing portal, presence of security officers and party agents, and voter turnout, according to a report by The Cable.
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“At least four polling officials were present in the polling units where the mock exercise held with an average of one female official. Security personnel were also present in 82 per cent of the polling units,” the report partly read.
“Party agents for the APC were present in 61 per cent of polling units, party agents for the PDP were present in 56 per cent of polling units, party agents for the LP were present in 22 per cent of polling units, the NNPP party agents in 13 per cent of polling units, the SDP party agents in nine per cent of polling units and party agents for APGA in eight per cent of polling units,” the report added.
The report stated that the BVAS functioned properly in 98 per cent of polling units, while it malfunctioned in two per cent. The glitches were, however, fixed.
“In 98 per cent of polling units, the BVAS functioned properly. However, in two per cent of polling units, the BVAS malfunctioned, and it was fixed. For instance, the BVAS malfunctioned in Zinaria International Sch, Mararaba PU (25-04-11-111) in Karu ward of Karu LGA in Nasarawa, Tsamiyan Gwamna PU (08-04-01-007) in Balbaya ward of Bayo LGA in Borno, Sarkin Noma, GDSS Dakka PU (34-02-09-007) of Gang Dole ward in Bali LGA, Taraba and S/Gari Jaka Mai Famfo/Kofar PU (36-08-06-007) of Kungurki ward in Kaura Nomoda LGA Zamfara. The malfunctioning of the device did not significantly disrupt the process,” it said.
Missing names were also reported with voters in 11 per cent of polling units, whose names were not found on the voter register and the BVAS denied accreditation.
“Yiaga Africa observers reported cases of missing names of the voter register. In 11 per cent of polling units, voters whose names were not on the register of voters and the BVAS were denied accreditation.
“55 per cent of observers indicated they were very satisfied with the conduct of the mock exercise, 40 per cent of observers reported they were satisfied and, four per cent of observers indicated they were not satisfied with the conduct of the mock accreditation exercise,” it added.
The report further stated, “Of the 36 states and the FCT, only 15 states uploaded data on the IReV during the mock accreditation. The states include Abia, Adamawa, Akwa-Ibom, Anambra, Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Gombe, Ondo, Rivers, Plateau, Oyo, Taraba and Sokoto.
“Only 82 Polling units uploaded the total number of accredited voters on the BVAS, to the IReV portal. All the 15 states that uploaded mock result sheets on the IReV also transmitted accreditation data except Oyo, Plateau, Edo and Ebonyi states. Of the 94 result sheets uploaded, only 16 result sheets were clear and readable.
“Yiaga Africa observed discrepancies in the total number of accredited voters uploaded by the BVAS and the total number of accredited voters recorded on the mock result sheets.”
Yiaga Africa recommended the following: that INEC should make its report on the BVAS testing public; notify voters via text message, emails or phone calls on migration of polling units; proper education of electoral officials on recording results to avoid discrepancies; and for INEC to ensure that all BVAS devices are in top condition before deployment for the general election.
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Headline
UPDATED: Defence Chief, Nine Others Die In Kenya Military Helicopter Crash
Published
2 hours agoon
April 18, 2024By
EditorA Kenyan military helicopter carrying top brass including the defence chief crashed on Thursday, police said.
President William Ruto convened an urgent meeting of the National Security Council, his office announced after news of the crash emerged.
Defence forces chief General Francis Omondi Ogolla was among those on board the helicopter that went down in Elgeyo Marakwet county, about 400 kilometres (250 miles) northwest of the capital Nairobi, a senior police officer told AFP.
“The helicopter burst into flames after crashing and it had more than 10 senior commanders on board including General Ogolla,” the officer said.
READ ALSO: Heavy Floods in UAE, Afghanistan, Pakistan, 135 People Killed
“They were in the area on a security mission because there are KDF (Kenya Defence Forces) soldiers deployed in the region,” he said.
Earlier, there was no report of official comment on casualties.
“President William Ruto has convened an urgent meeting of the National Security Council at State House Nairobi this evening following a Kenya Defence Forces’ helicopter crash this afternoon in Elgeyo-Marakwet County,” State House spokesman Hussein Mohamed said in a statement.
Ogolla, 61, was appointed Chief of the Defence Forces by Ruto in April last year after a stint as deputy.
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Ruto told journalists last May that he appointed Ogolla despite him being among those who tried to overturn his narrow election win against opposition leader Raila Odinga in 2022.
“When I looked at his CV, he was the best person to be (a) general,” Ruto said, adding his decision went against the wishes of many people.
A trained fighter pilot, Ogolla joined the KDF in April 1984, rising through the ranks to command the Kenyan Air Force in 2018, a post he held for three years.
However, in a latest report, President Ruto said Ogolla and nine other senior military officers died in a helicopter crash on Thursday.
He added that only two survived the air accident.
“Today at 2:20 pm, our nation suffered a tragic air accident… I am deeply saddened to announce the passing on of General Francis Omondi Ogolla,” Ruto said.
AFP
Headline
Heavy Floods in UAE, Afghanistan, Pakistan, 135 People Killed
Published
4 hours agoon
April 18, 2024By
EditorAround 70 people have been killed by heavy rains lashing Afghanistan over the past five days, the government’s disaster management department said on Wednesday.
Neighbouring Pakistan has also been hammered by spring downpours, with 65 people killed in storm-related incidents as rain falls at nearly twice the historical average rate, officials told AFP.
Dubai’s flagship Emirates airline cancelled all check-ins on Wednesday as staff and passengers struggled to arrive and leave, with access roads flooded and some metro services suspended.
Afghanistan was parched by an unusually dry winter that desiccated the earth, exacerbating flash-flooding caused by spring downpours in most provinces.
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Disaster management spokesman Janan Sayeq said “approximately 70 people lost their lives” as a result of rains between Saturday and Wednesday.
Fifty-six others have been injured, he added while more than 2,600 houses have been damaged or destroyed and 95,000 acres of farmland wiped away.
Giving a smaller death toll last week, Sayeq said most fatalities at that point had been caused by roof collapses resulting from the deluges.
The United Nations last year warned that “Afghanistan is experiencing major swings in extreme weather conditions”.
After four decades of war, the country ranks among the nations least prepared to face extreme weather events, which scientists say are becoming more frequent and severe due to climate change.
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At least 25 people were killed in a landslide after massive snowfall in eastern Afghanistan in February, while around 60 were killed in a three-week spate of precipitation ending in March.
In Pakistan, heavy downpours between Friday and Monday unleashed flash floods and caused houses to collapse, while lightning killed at least 28 people.
The largest death toll was in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where 32 people have died, including 15 children, and more than 1,300 homes have been damaged.
“All the casualties resulted from the collapse of walls and roofs,” the spokesman for the province’s disaster management authority, Anwar Khan, told AFP on Wednesday.
Dubai’s giant highways were clogged by flooding and airport passengers were urged to stay away on Wednesday as the glitzy financial centre reeled from record rains.
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Huge tailbacks snaked along six-lane expressways after up to 254 millimetres of rain – about two years’ worth – fell on the desert United Arab Emirates on Tuesday.
At least one person was killed after a 70-year-old man was swept away in his car in Ras Al-Khaimah, one of the country’s seven emirates, police said.
Passengers were warned not to come to Dubai Airport, the world’s busiest by international traffic, “unless absolutely necessary,” an official said.
“Flights continue to be delayed and diverted… We are working hard to recover operations as quickly as possible in very challenging conditions,” a Dubai Airports spokesperson said.
Climatologist Friederike Otto, a specialist in assessing the role of climate change on extreme weather events, told AFP it was “highly likely” that global warming had worsened the storms.
Two German-Russian men were arrested in Bavaria on suspicion of spying for Russia and planning blasts and arson attacks to undermine Berlin’s military support for Ukraine, German prosecutors said Thursday.
The pair, identified only as Dieter S. and Alexander J., were arrested in the city of Bayreuth in southeastern Germany on Wednesday, federal prosecutors said in a statement.
The main accused, Dieter S., is alleged to have scouted potential targets for attacks, “including facilities of the US armed forces” stationed in Germany.
Police officers also searched both men’s residences and workplaces on Wednesday.
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They are suspected of “having been active for a foreign intelligence service” in what prosecutors described as a “particularly serious case” of espionage.
According to prosecutors, Dieter S. had been exchanging information with a person linked to Russian intelligence services since October 2023, discussing possible sabotage acts.
“The actions were intended, in particular, to undermine the military support provided from Germany to Ukraine against the Russian aggression,” prosecutors said.
The accused allegedly expressed readiness to “commit explosive and arson attacks mainly on military infrastructure and industrial sites in Germany”.
To this end, Dieter S. collected information about potential targets, “including facilities of the US armed forces”.
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Fellow accused Alexander J. began assisting him in March 2024 at the latest, they added.
Dieter S. scouted some of the potential targets by taking photos and videos of military transport and equipment. He then allegedly shared the information with his contact person.
Dieter S. also faces a separate charge of belonging to a foreign terrorist organisation, as prosecutors strongly suspect he was a fighter of an armed unit of the so-called “People’s Republic of Donetsk” in eastern Ukraine in 2014-2016.
Germany has been shaken by several cases of alleged spying for Russia since the invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, amid suggestions that officials in Berlin are too sympathetic to Moscow.
A former German intelligence officer is currently on trial in Berlin, accused of handing information to Moscow that showed Germany had access to details of Russian mercenary operations in Ukraine. He denies the charges.
In November 2022, a German man was handed a suspended sentence for passing information to Russian intelligence services while working as a reserve officer for the German army.
AFP
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