Yiaga Africa said it has deployed a total of 3,836 observers throughout the country for the 2023 presidential election.
the Chair, WTV Working Group, Dr Hussaini Abdu and Executive Director Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo while briefing newsmen at the pre-election press conference in Abuja, explained that the deployment comprised of 3,014 stationary Parallel Vote Tabulation (PVT) observers deployed to a random representative statistical sample of 1,507 polling units; 822 roving observers across the 774 LGAs and 36 states; and 8 Working Group members who run real-time election analysis.
They said Yiaga Africa will also deploy observers to the LGA and State Results Collation Centres in every state.
“Our observers will observe the entire election day process from set-up of the polling units through the announcement, posting of the official results and uploading of the polling units to the INEC Result Viewing Portal.
“The observers will send in periodic reports to the Watching the Vote National Data Centre located in the Transcorp Hilton in Abuja where they will be processed and analysed.
“This deployment will enable Yiaga Africa to provide the most timely and accurate information on the election process. Based on reports from its observers in the sampled polling units Yiaga Africa will also provide an independent projection of voter turnout and will be able to project the vote shares that each party should receive within a narrow range.
“If the official results fall within Yiaga Africa’s estimated ranges, then the public, political parties and candidates should have confidence in the ballots cast at the polling units.
“Only INEC, however, has the legal mandate to announce the election results. As soon as INEC announces the official results, Yiaga Africa will follow up with a result verification press conference to share its own statement on the accuracy of the election results and will publicize these projections,” they said.
