The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday said it was presently harnessing the lessons from the 2019 general electionz and harvesting positive recommendations aimed at improving subsequent elections
INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, Mr. Festus Okoye, said this at a four-day workshop on media monitoring for some INEC publicity officers in Abuja.
He assured Nigerians that the commission would continue to improve on its processes and procedures.
Speaking on the workshop, the national commissioner said its aimed at increasing understanding of INEC public officers of new issues, challenges and possibilities in the media.
Okoye added that it was also aimed at how to harness such possibilities and arrest negative perception relating to the work of the commission and build a positive image for INEC.
He said that part of the challenges faced by the commission during the 2019 general elections revolves around information management and strategic communication as well as managing public perception around the processes and procedures of the Commission.
The INEC national commissioner, however, commended the European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES) for the Media Monitoring Center it donated to the commission.
“The Commission must study and understand the thinking of young people who constitute over 50 per cent of the registered voting population in Nigeria and what keeps them away from the polling units”, NAN quoted him as saying.
“Young persons are very active on the social media and yet have not succeeded in influencing in a significant way the pattern of voting in Nigeria.
“It is a matter of common knowledge that a large proportion of the young people are exceedingly active on the social media and take active part in debates around elections and the electoral process.
“It is our responsibility to understudy and understand the direction and perspectives of young people in relation to the electoral process and why they are very active in the social media and inactive in the voting process,” he said.
