Election days like Immunization Plus Days (IPDs) are scheduled months before the exercise is implemented.
In fact, for the general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) fixes dates at least two years before the due date, while the National Programme on Immunization (NPI) fixes dates for IPDs depending on the sporadic level of incidence and outbreaks of diseases due to low vaccination coverage, but the logistics management is seamlessly sorted before the implementation days.
Last Saturday, the election for senate, house of reps and presidential positions that had Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP), Atiku Abubakar of People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and Bola Ahmed Tinubu of All Progressive Congress (APC) as major candidates on the ballot papers could not hold in some places due to lack of mobility/improper logistics management of electoral and sensitive materials to the polling unit by INEC officials.
According to Sahara Reporters, some voters, in Enugu, who were eager to exercise their civic responsibilities waited for many hours in vain, as INEC officials didn’t show up in time for the day’s electioneering process to commence until 11 am, despite multiple reports stating that the commission began distribution of materials on Thursday.
The Commission’s Registration Area Centre Coordination (RAC) for Port Harcourt City Local Government Area (LGA), Chief Emmanuel Chike excused that the late commencement of the electoral proceedings is a result of the late distribution of election materials to the polling unit. He noted that the sorting and distribution of sensitive materials started on Friday evening. This is not the first time INEC will be facing logistical challenges. The Conversation reported that the commission was forced to postpone the 2019 general elections, after citing the aforementioned challenges and arson attacks on some of its offices in Plateau, Anambra, and Abia States.
Lessons INEC Can Learn from IPDs
Immunization Plus, in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) region, is an approach adopted by health stakeholders and supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to “integrate immunization services with other essential services for children such as birth registration, Vitamin A supplementation, growth screening, deworming and pre-positioned Oral Hydration Salts (ORS) with Zinc through an accelerated response” such as OBR to optimize the vaccination coverage.
In Africa, some children are exposed to diseases such as Acute Flaccid Paralysis, Measles, and Rotavirus. These diseases are preventable by vaccines, but the low vaccination coverage makes the diseases persist. Supplemental Immunization Activities (SIA) are conducted to increase the low vaccination coverage in areas where there is an outbreak of vaccine-preventable diseases.
Within the days leading to the implementation, vaccination materials are moved via a system known as Immunization Supply Chain Logistics (ISCL). This system was designed in the early 1980s to improve the strategies used for vaccine distribution to avoid obstruction in the accessibility and use of vaccines, as the essence of the vaccination program will be scuppered if the system isn’t duly monitored.
The effectiveness of the ISCL can be measured based on the early arrival of the vaccine, cold chain storage facility (temperature, capacity, infrastructure, and maintenance), stock management, distribution, vaccine management, and information systems. These criteria serve as an appraisal of the effective logistics of vaccines.
Like IPDs’ effect on low vaccination coverage, where there is a dearth of proper governance, every four years, citizens go to their polling units to exercise civic responsibility and elect a leader they deem capable of remedying the ineffectiveness in the governmental system.
The electioneering process should have a logistics system where sensitive materials are effectively moved before and during the implementation period. The Commission should also strike a partnership with Central Banks domiciled across the states in the federation for the distribution of election-sensitive materials to the various polling units on election day. This would prevent citizens not to be disenfranchised, and the voting exercise would experience early commencement and results would be announced without delay. These are lessons INEC can learn from IPDs on logistics management to avoid gaps in future elections.
