By Perpetua Onuegbu
The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room has commended Osun voters for their peaceful participation in Saturday’s governorship election.
The Situation Room made this known in its final statement issued on Monday and jointly signed by its Convener, Yunusa Ya’u, and Co-convener, Mma Odi.
The statement was read at a news conference in Abuja.
It said it deployed accredited observers across all 30 Local Government Areas, combining their reports with citizen observations and reports from partner organisations through the Election Accountability Tracker application.
The group said CLEEN Foundation, Centre for Democracy and Development and Kimpact Development Initiative deployed more than 300 accredited observers.
It said election officials and materials arrived between 7:00 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. in most polling units observed.
According to the group, voting commenced in 87 per cent of polling units observed, although some locations experienced delays due to logistical challenges.
It attributed some delays to the late reproduction and distribution of sensitive materials following the late addition of the SDP candidate to the ballot papers.
The Situation Room said officials generally followed established accreditation and voting procedures, contributing to an orderly process across most polling units.
It said INEC recorded 2,339,233 registered voters, while 1,906,390 collected their Permanent Voter Cards, representing 81.50 per cent.
The organisation said final figures showed that 1,005,800 votes were cast, representing approximately 43.2 per cent voter turnout.
It, however, expressed concern over technical difficulties involving the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, especially at polling units with large numbers of registered voters.
The Situation Room said some BVAS devices experienced delays recognising elderly voters, while fingerprint authentication difficulties required facial verification in some locations.
It noted that BVAS challenges were recorded in Ila, Irepodun, Ayedaade and Irewole Local Government Areas.
The Situation Room urged INEC to address recurring biometric authentication challenges ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The group said uploading of polling-unit results to INEC’s Result Viewing Portal progressed significantly, with 98.43 per cent uploaded as of Aug. 16.
It commended security agencies for maintaining a generally peaceful environment in spite of the tense atmosphere preceding the election.
The Situation Room, however, reported isolated incidents of harassment, thuggery and vote buying in some polling locations.
It expressed particular concern over alleged voter inducement, saying vote buying remained a direct assault on free choice and democratic values.
The stakeholders therefore called for the establishment of an Electoral Offences Commission to investigate and prosecute such offences and deter future violations.
The Situation Room also urged security agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, to strengthen mechanisms for preventing, investigating and prosecuting electoral offences.
The organisation identified accessibility concerns, including polling units located near gutters and staircases, as well as limited disability-inclusive resources.
It said some polling units lacked adequate chairs and tables for officials, while Form EC40H for recording voters with disabilities was unavailable.
It called on INEC to conduct a comprehensive post-election audit covering logistics, BVAS, results transmission, security, accessibility and complaints ahead of the 2027 elections.
The organisation urged political parties, the judiciary, INEC, security agencies, media and civil society to learn from the Osun election and strengthen electoral credibility, transparency, accountability and public trust.
“Citizens’ strong participation and vigilance contributed significantly to the peaceful Osun election. However, vote buying, electoral violence and pre-election killings remain major threats requiring urgent attention,” it said. (NAN) www.nannews.ng
Edited by Tosin Kolade