VZCZCXRO0333
OO RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHOS #0241/01 0891429
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 301429Z MAR 07
FM AMCONSUL LAGOS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8714
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHUJA/AMEMBASSY ABUJA PRIORITY 8541
RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW PRIORITY 0256
RUEHCD/AMCONSUL CIUDAD JUAREZ PRIORITY 0236
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL PRIORITY 0235
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO PRIORITY 0237
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH AFB UK PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LAGOS 000241 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA, DS/IP/AF, DS/ICI/PII, DS/DSS/OSAC 
WARSAW FOR LISA PIASCIK 
CIUDAD JUAREZ FOR DONNA BLAIR 
ISTANBUL FOR TASHAWNA SMITH 
SAO PAULO FOR ANDREW WITHERSPOON 
DOE FOR GPERSON, CAROLYN GAY 
TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS, SRENENDER, DFIELDS 
COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS 
STATE PASS USTR FOR ASST USTR FLISER 
STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD 
STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN AND MSTUCKART 
STATE PASS TDA FOR NCABOT 
STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER 
STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: NI PGOV PREL PTER
SUBJECT: ELECTION DAY DETAILS HAZY; EDO INEC PREPARING FOR 
ELECTIONS 
 
LAGOS 00000241  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  Summary:  The Edo State Independent Electoral Commission 
(ESIEC) has not yet received guidance from the Independent 
National Electoral Commission on how to conduct the April 14 
or 21 elections.  ESIEC is preparing for the elections by 
identifying and training polling station agents and by 
merging the manual and electronic voter registration lists. 
Long-term observers from the National Democratic Institute 
agree that Benin City will be the epicenter of a fierce race 
for the Edo State governorship.  End Summary. 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
April 14 and 21 Election Day Details Unknown 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  Gregory Ogban, Head of Technical Services at the Edo 
State Independent Electoral Commission (ESIEC), told Poloffs 
on March 19 that the Independent National Electoral 
Commission (INEC) had not announced what voting process would 
be used April 14 and 21.  He said the difficulties ESIEC 
experienced with registration machines and printers during 
voter registration suggest there will be significant 
challenges on voting day.  Ogban said polling stations would 
have ballots so voters could cast votes by hand but was 
unsure whether ESIEC would receive electronic machines.  He 
said the presidential and governorship ballots would display 
the candidates' pictures, which he believes will facilitate 
the voting process for some voters. 
 
¶3.  Edo currently has 2,629 polling units.  Ogban predicted 
Abuja would give Edo some of the additional 30,000 polling 
stations which have been slated for 2007.  (Note: Ogban did 
not know how many additional stations Edo would receive nor 
how this number would be determined. End Note.)  The new 
stations would be placed in new development areas, Ogban 
said.  While there will be polling stations throughout Edo's 
local government areas (LGAs), densely populated areas will 
have more stations. 
 
¶4.  Ogban said each polling station will announce the voting 
results for constituency elections (Senate and House of 
Assembly) before sending them to their ward's collating 
center.  The voting results would then be sent to the state 
headquarters and INEC.  Ogban predicted the results would be 
verbally announced at every step and transmitted 
electronically, although he said the transmission devices 
have not yet been distributed.  Unlike constituency 
elections, the results for the presidential and governorship 
elections will not be announced but will instead be sent 
directly to INEC in Abuja.  This contravenes the 2006 
Electoral Act which stipulates that all results must be 
announced at the polling place, he said.  It is unlikely the 
voting results would be submitted simultaneously nationwide, 
Ogban reasoned, because remote stations would close early 
once all votes from registered voters had been cast. 
 
----------------------------------------- 
...But Preparation for Elections Underway 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  Edosians will cast their votes at polling stations 
located in the same location where they registered, Ogban 
said.  When asked for a list of the locations for polling 
stations, Ogban said such a list was unavailable because 
polling stations are determined by each local government.  By 
 
LAGOS 00000241  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
mid March, ESIEC will begin training ad hoc poll workers 
drawn from among civil servants, teachers, INEC staff, and 
university professors who will man the polling stations.  To 
ensure that the poll workers are nonpartisan, ESIEC will send 
workers' names to the State Security Service (SSS) for 
background checks.  Ogban estimated three ad hoc personnel 
would be present at each polling station.  There will also be 
one representative from each political party, as well as 
domestic and international observers, Ogban predicted.  INEC 
has not yet provided details as to how observers may operate, 
he said. 
 
¶6.  ESIEC is processing manual and electronic registrations 
and correcting misspellings and incorrect photos, according 
to Imoudu-Sule, Head of Public Affairs at ESIEC. 
Approximately 45 percent of the population in Edo has 
registered, she said. 
 
¶7.  Ogban and Imoudu-Sule do not anticipate much 
election-related violence in Edo State, although they noted 
three local government areas (LGAs) in Benin City (Oredo, 
Ikpoba-Okha, and Egor) are most likely to exhibit "irregular 
activity."  In a subsequent interview, the Edo State Police 
Commissioner, B.A. Hassan said it was unlikely violence would 
be a problem.  However, the two leading candidates for 
governor, Adams Oshiomole with the Action Congress (AC) and 
Oserheimen Osunbor with the People's Democratic Party (PDP), 
told Poloffs their opponents have already instigated violence 
in the course of their campaigns. 
 
-------------------------------------------- 
NDI Long-term Observers Begin Edo Assessment 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  Long-term National Democratic Institute (NDI) observers 
arrived in Edo on March 18.  On March 20, the NDI observers 
told Poloffs that they expected the race between Adams 
Oshiomole of the Action Congress (AC) and Oserheimen Osunbor 
of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) to be very close in 
Benin City.  (Note: Oshiomole is from Edo North and Osunbor 
is from Edo Central.  Edo South, where Benin City is located, 
is expected to be the most hotly contested region of the 
state. End Note.)  NDI is trying to acquire a list of polling 
stations, the voter register, the number of campaign permits 
thus far denied, and details of the screening process for ad 
hoc polling station workers. 
BROWNE