The Yobe State Independent Electoral Commission (YOSIEC) has fixed September 26 for the conduct of local government council elections across the state.

YOSIEC Executive Chairman, Dr Ibrahim Yabani, made the announcement in Damaturu on Wednesday during a one-day in-house workshop for 34 electoral officers (EO’s) and assistant electoral officers (AEO’s) on the forthcoming elections.

He said the training was aimed at equipping the officials with the knowledge and skills required to conduct a credible, transparent and peaceful election.

Mr Yabani said the integrity, accuracy and diligence of the electoral officers would ultimately determine the success of the election, which would be conducted simultaneously across the state’s 17 local government areas and 178 electoral wards.

He explained that the commission’s mandate was derived from Section 197 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), which empowers State Independent Electoral Commissions to organise, conduct and supervise elections into local government councils.

According to him, the commission remains faithful to its electoral timetable after notifying political parties and other stakeholders of its readiness and issuing election guidelines on April 23, 2026.

He stated, “The purpose of this training is to remind you that the credibility of every election begins with the early distribution of election materials, the timely opening of polling units and strict adherence to electoral procedures.

“After the close of voting, the most sensitive phase of the electoral process begins, which includes sorting, counting and accurately recording election results. Every single ballot must be accounted for, while the accurate transfer of physical vote counts into the official result sheets is absolute and non-negotiable.”

The chairman noted that though most of the participants had considerable experience in election administration, the training was necessary to ensure uniformity in procedures and eliminate errors that could undermine the credibility of the exercise.

He said the exercise was designed to minimise mathematical discrepancies, prevent procedural disputes and guarantee transparency throughout the electoral process.

Mr Yabani urged the participants to pay close attention to the facilitators and cooperate fully during the training.

He added that the facilitators were carefully selected from the three senatorial districts of the state to ensure balanced representation and effective knowledge sharing.

(NAN)

NB/YMU