A group, Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Advancement (YIAGA AFRICA), is to deploy 548 observers, as part of measures to deter fraud and manipulation in the Nov. 16 Kogi governorship election.

Cynthia Mbamalu, Programme Director, YIAGA AFRICA, disclosed this while speaking at a media roundtable on the state governorship election, organised by on Friday, in Lokoja.

She said that the 548 people, consisting of 500 polling unit observers, 27 long term observers and 21 local government area result coalition centre observers, would monitor the governorship election in the state.

Mbamalu, who said that the move was to make the result of the election credible and acceptable to all, urged stakeholders to strive towards making sure that citizens’ votes counted in the forthcoming election.

She called for dissemination of timely and accurate information about the election process to voters and stakeholders so as to build citizens’ confidence in the exercise.

The YIAGA programme director said as part of efforts at ensuring that the election was free of fraud and manipulation, the group would deploy the PVT methodology for election observation, describing it as a powerful citizens’ tool for assessing polling units on the day of election.

Mbamalu said that election observation should be data-based and evidential rather than sentimental, adding that YIAGA AFRICA was concerned about promoting electoral reforms, using data.

In his remarks, Alh. Adeiza Momoh-Jimoh, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kogi council, assured that the media would live up to their billing in ensuring accurate and objective reportage of the election.

He commended the group for its commitment to the conduct of a hitch-free governorship election in the state, urging the media to concentrate on peace messages and avoid sensational reports which might ignite violence and disrupt the election.