Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) under the European Union Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria Phase Two (EU-SDGN II) have called for the review of the N5 million campaign signage levy imposed by the Ekiti State Signage and Advertisement Agency.
They made this call at the Launch of the Ekiti State Pre-Assessment Report in Abuja on Thursday.
According to them, the levy serves as a barrier to the participation of women, People With Disabilities (PWDs) and has disproportionately disadvantaged opposition parties.
The group also informed that the off-cycle governorship election in Ekiti State mattered because it is the first governorship election to be governed by the new Electoral Act 2026.
“It will test the implementation of key provisions of the new Act and yet to be issued INEC regulations and guidelines including those on electronic results transmission, administrative review of election results and results collation”, they said.
The CSOs noted that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC’s) preparedness was an operational emergency:
“A 34% INEC preparedness rate, delayed election funding, an effectively uncontested political space, zero female candidates across 13 parties, and a media environment partially suppressed by a punitive levy are not the markers of a conducive electoral environment. They are warning signs and this report names them as such”, they said.
They therefore urged INEC to ensure the timely release and effective utilisation of election funds to complete pending pre-election activities, including the rehabilitation of State and LGA offices, RACs and collation centres.
Aditionally, INEC should configure and stress-test the BVAS and the IReV to guarantee seamless accreditation, transparent collation and the credible electronic transmission of results in line with the Electoral Act 2026.
They should also activate the INEC Security and Alert Notification System (ISANS) for rapid response, provide raincoats and protective covering for personnel and materials, and intensify civic and voter education to address apathy and discourage vote trading.
INEC should further implement priority voting and accessibility measures for vulnerable persons, expand the deployment of assistive devices, and improve the collection of gender- and PWD-disaggregated data.
The group, comprising of the Election Observation Hub Centre For Media and Society (CEMESO), ElectHER International Press Centre (IPC), Nigerian Women Trust Fund (NWTF), TAF Africa, The Kukah Centre and Yiaga Africa urged Security and Law Enforcement Agencies to guarantee the safety of voters, journalists, observers, electoral personnel and election materials throughout the process.
The Nigeria Police Force developed Operation Order 08/2026, proposing the deployment of 9,780 conventional officers, 25 units of mobile policemen, 200 patrol vehicles, 12 Armoured Personnel Carriers and three helicopters, complemented by other security agencies for the exercise.
In conclusion, the CSOs urged candidates to sign and uphold the Peace Accord, commit publicly to issue-based campaigning, reject vote buying, intimidation and the deployment of thugs, and accept credible electoral outcomes.
Traditional and religious leaders were also advised to remain non-partisan, leverage their moral authority to discourage vote trading, and provide early warning information to INEC and security agencies.
