Ahead of the August 9 governorship election in Osun State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has assured of a free, fair and credible poll, saying the outcome of the election would be acceptable to all stakeholders.
The new Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Mr. Olusegun Agbaje, at his maiden press conference in Osogbo yesterday, said the commission was prepared to conduct an election devoid of manipulations in the state on August 9.
He assured that the forthcoming governorship election in the state would be the best in the history of the country, adding that all necessary machinery had been put in motion to achieve the desired result.
Soliciting the co-operation of all political parties in the state to achieve the commission’s desired result, the INEC boss urged all security agents in the state to show high level professionalism before and during the election.
According to him, 780,464 permanent voters cards had been distributed to eligible voters across the 30 local government areas in the state.
He disclosed that 20 political parties would participate in the election, adding that the candidates of the parties, including their running mates, had been screened by INEC.
However, he noted that the Action Alliance (AA) had recently changed the name of its gubernatorial candidate to Tunde Oralusi.
The INEC boss also insisted that no individual would be allowed to vote in any of the polling centres in the state without the permanent voters card and urged those who were yet to receive theirs to do so before the election.
Agbaje, who opined that the election would be successful going by the efforts put in place by INEC, called on the electorate in the state to shun violence before and during the election.
He enjoined all relevant federal agencies in the state, including the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and the Federal Ministry of Information, to partner with INEC in order to ensure a credible election.

Osun: INEC assures of credible election