By joshua As Kogi Goes To Polls, KOSIEC’S Readiness Not In Doubt; Collective Responsibility The Watchword
By Abu Micheal
Come Saturday, 17th October, 2026, the people of Kogi State across the 21 Local Government Areas will file out in their numbers to elect Chairmen, Vice Chairmen and Councillors who will provide leadership at the grassroots, the closest tier of government to the people.
The last time Kogi State conducted council elections was in October 2024. The exercise, superintended by the Hon. Mamman Nda Eri-led Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission, KOSIEC, scored a pass mark for its peaceful conduct and its spread across all 2,548 polling units in 239 wards, though not without the usual vilification that trails every electoral contest in Nigeria. Two years on, the stakes are higher, and the expectations are greater.
While KOSIEC is still to announce the final figure of eligible voters for Saturday’s poll, the most recent verifiable data from its Chairman’s press briefings and INEC records puts Kogi’s total registered voters at 1,932,654, with elections to be held across 21 LGAs, 239 electoral wards and 3,508 polling units. This figure is drawn from the INEC voters register, which KOSIEC is constitutionally mandated to use, as reaffirmed by the Chairman in line with the Memorandum of Understanding between both commissions.
What distinguishes this election is not the date, but the deliberate 365-day preparation that preceded it. In compliance with Section 28(1) of the Electoral Act 2022, KOSIEC issued its Notice of Election 360 days ahead, on 22nd October, 2025, a move commended by stakeholders as a sign of transparency. Since then, the Nda Eri leadership has moved from planning to full operational readiness. According to the Commission, training of electoral personnel has been intensified, Returning Officers have been profiled and deployed, and arrangements for the secure custody and timely distribution of sensitive and non-sensitive materials have been concluded. The Commission has also activated collaboration with security agencies through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security, ICCES, to safeguard personnel, materials and voters. This is not by accident. Since his appointment in March 2020, Hon. Eri has overseen two council polls, December 2020 and October 2024, and his elevation as National Chairman of the Forum of State Independent Electoral Commissions, FOSIECON, is testament to a tenure marked by efficiency and stakeholder confidence.
On every platform, the KOSIEC Chairman has been unequivocal: this election will be free, fair, credible, transparent and inclusive. At the recent oversight visit by the House Committee on SIEC and at the stakeholders’ meeting in Lokoja, Eri assured that the credibility of the polls would depend not only on election day activities, but on adequate preparation, effective coordination with security agencies, professional conduct by electoral officials and cooperation among stakeholders and that results will be published on its official website. He has urged aggrieved parties to seek redress only through the lawful channel of the election tribunal, and charged the media to guard against misinformation.
As provided in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Electoral Act 2022 and the Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission Law 2025, the core functions of KOSIEC include organizing, undertaking and supervising elections into local government councils, fixing dates for council elections, registering and screening candidates sponsored by political parties, conducting voter education, and ensuring that elections are conducted in compliance with the law. Judged by these statutory yardsticks, and without mincing words, the Mamman Nda Eri leadership has proven to be tested and trusted.
The independence of KOSIEC under Eri has been made public from day one of the 365-day countdown. The Commission has demonstrated neutrality in ways that matter. It invalidated the primaries of major parties, including PDP, ADC and SDP, for non-compliance with electoral laws, citing missed timelines and failure to produce congress records and court judgments. It insisted that only political parties duly registered and recognised by INEC would be eligible to sponsor candidates. It sustained consultations with all parties, not just a few. These are not actions of a compromised umpire, but of one determined to stand its ground.
Democracy is not the Commission’s responsibility alone. Never in the history of SIEC in Kogi has there been such sustained, repeated engagement with political parties ahead of a council election as witnessed under this leadership. That spirit of openness must be reciprocated. All participating political parties must demonstrate the greatest cooperation, play by the rules, and educate their supporters on peaceful conduct. To the security agencies, paramilitary formations, accredited observers, civil society and the media, neutrality is non-negotiable.
The Police Command in Kogi, through Commissioner Naziru Kankarofi, working with other security agencies has already assured of adequate security, stating that officers are on ground and strategies have been mapped out. That assurance must translate into professional, non-partisan conduct on the field.
Most importantly, to our youths, who constitute the bulk of the electorate, this is a solemn appeal: do not be used to disrupt the polls. Shun violence before, during and after the election. Your future is on the ballot, not in the pockets of those who would pay you to destroy it.
KOSIEC has done what an electoral body should do, it has prepared, it has engaged, it has assured, and it has shown independence. What remains is for all stakeholders to play their part to ensure that October 17 is not just another election, but a referendum on our collective maturity. For raising the bar, for its top-notch logistics and manpower arrangements, and for the confidence it has built in the minds of Kogites that votes will count, the Mamman Nda Eri-led KOSIEC deserves commendation. The readiness is not in doubt. Let collective responsibility be the watchword.
Beyond the preparations and the assurances, it is impossible to discuss KOSIEC’s rebirth without the character of its Chairman. Hon. Mamman Nda Eri is a thoroughbred administrator, untainted and unbiased, a man who has proven over time that he is trustworthy when all hands work in collaboration. In an environment where electoral umpires are often second-guessed, Eri has earned his reputation not by noise, but by procedure, by consistency and by courage to do what is right even when it is difficult.