INEC fixes date for bye-election to replace murdered Taraba lawmaker

The Independent National Electoral Commission has fixed August 18 for bye election into Takum 1 Taraba House of Assembly seat.
Resident Electoral Commissioner for the state, Alhaji Baba Yusuf, said this on Wednesday while addressing state party chairmen in Jalingo.
Yusuf explained that the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Abel Diah, had written to the commission on Tuesday declaring the seat vacant.
The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that Hosea Ibi, representing Takum 1 constituency, was abducted in Takum on December 31, 2017 and murdered by his abductors in January 2018.
Yusuf urged the stakeholders to cooperate with the commission to ensure a successful election.
He said: “I am pleased to inform you that the Speaker of Taraba Assembly, Abel Diah, wrote to the commission on Tuesday, July 24, and declared the long awaited Takum 1 seat vacant.
“The commission is therefore mandated by law to conduct a bye election to fill the vacancy within 30 days.”
Yusuf told the gathering that the continuous voter’s registration  would end on August17 by 5pm.
He assured them that all registered voters would get their permanent voter cards before 2019 general elections.
He added: “We are ending the CVR on August 17 because we want all registered voters to get their PVCs.
“Distribution of PVCs will end one week to the 2019 elections and we have put in place measures to ensure smooth distribution.”