The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has expressed concern over the low turnout of registrants in Gombe State in the ongoing nationwide continuous voter registration (CVR) exercise.

The resident electoral commissioner (REC) in Gombe State, Sa’ad Idris, made this known on Tuesday during a stakeholders’ meeting on the CVR in Gombe.

“Gombe State is significantly behind other states in terms of the number of voter registrations.

“When compared with states in the South like Osun, which has recorded over 34,000 applications, or Yobe with more than 30,000, Gombe is lagging behind.

“Stakeholders need to step up awareness efforts to boost participation in the CVR exercise. We must encourage our people to take advantage of the online platform. Those who pre-register online should complete the process at our designated centres,” he said.

Mr Idris said that INEC would soon commence a sensitisation campaign across the state, with radio jingles and other media outreach to increase awareness.

“Before the sensitisation campaign begins fully, we urge everyone to help disseminate this information to the grassroots,” he said.

Also speaking, Governor Inuwa Yahaya, represented by the chairman of the State Independent Electoral Commission, Abdu Garba, described the exercise as a major step towards strengthening democracy.

He assured that the state government would work closely with INEC to ensure more citizens take part in the ongoing CVR exercise.

The Emir of Gombe, Abubakar Shehu III, represented by Sani Jauro, Danlawan of Gombe, expressed concern over the low turnout of eligible voters in the state.

He assured that the traditional institution would intensify mobilisation for voter registration and PVC collection.

(NAN)