The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said its Edo State headquarters in Benin City was completely flooded following a torrential rainfall on Friday.
INEC National Commissioner and chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday.
Olumekun said the heavy downpour damaged a section of the building and movable as well as immovable items were submerged, including vehicles parked at the premises, office furniture and equipment.
He also said some of the voter enrollment machines already configured for the forthcoming Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) were affected.
The INEC Commissioner assured that the Commission was delivering additional machines from the neighbouring States to make up for the shortfall as the gears for its governorship election.
“We are determined to ensure that the CVR in all the 192 Wards across Edo State will proceed on Monday 27th November 2024 as scheduled.
“However, in view of the emergency situation, the State Headquarters will not serve as a registration centre as planned. Instead, the exercise will now take place in our Ikpoba Okha LGA office located at 16 Customs Road, off Benin/Auchi Road, Benin City.
“Meanwhile, the attention of the security agencies and emergency services has been drawn to the incident,” the statement added.
