INEC Disqualifies 106,280 Voters Ahead Osun, Ekiti Guber Polls

•Discloses 1,126,359 registration infractions recorded in FCT, 36 states

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has announced the disqualification of some 106,280 voters in the two states of Osun and Ekiti for allegedly flouting the guidelines stipulated for the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise ahead of their governorship elections in June and July this year.

INEC also stated that about 1,126,359 voters would be disqualified in total because of same infractions.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, who gave the disclosure during a press conference at the Commission’s Headquarters, said the infraction happened in all the states of the Federation.

For instance, in Ekiti State, a total of 40,234 new voters were registered out of which 17,640 were voided, representing 43.9% of the completed registrations, while in Osun State, 218,142 new registrations were completed, out of which 88,630 were invalidated, representing 40.6% of the total number of new voters.

According to Yakubu, out of the 2,523,458 new registrations, 1,126,359, representing 44.6% were invalid, adding that the infractions, which were sun covered while cleaning up the voter register, happened across the 36 states.

Yakubu stated: “While the number of new registrants is very impressive and demonstrates the eagerness of Nigerians to vote in the forthcoming elections, the Commission has a duty to clean up the data to ensure that only eligible Nigerians are registered.

“As you are aware, the foundation for any credible election rests on the credibility of the Register of Voters. The introduction of the biometric registration of voters in 2011 has helped to sanitize the Register. You may recall that initially, 73,528,040 Nigerians were registered in 2011.

“Using the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS), the Commission was able to remove 4,239,923 invalid registrations. Consequently, the register of voters for the 2015 general election stood at 69,288,117 voters.

“Subsequently, some 432,173 new voters were added to the register during the CVR exercises ahead of the off-cycle governorship elections in five States (Bayelsa, Kogi, Edo, Ondo and Anambra) from late 2015 to early 2017, bringing the total number of registered voters in Nigeria to 69,720,350.”

Lamenting the incidents of double registrations, the INEC chairman said, “Sadly, it seems that many registrants, either out of ignorance that they do not need to re-register if they had done so before, or a belief that our systems will not detect this infraction, have gone out to register again.

“This is despite repeated warnings by the Commission against this illegal action. In addition, there are also registrants, whose data were incomplete and did not meet our Business Rules for inclusion in the register. Both categories i.e. the failure of ABIS and incomplete data constitute invalid registrations. Presently, nearly 45% of completed registrations nationwide are invalid, rising to as high as 60% or more in some states.

“These infractions happened in all states of the federation. No state is immune from it. These invalid registrations will not be included in the Register of Voters. In our commitment to transparency, the distribution of the registration figures, including the percentages of valid and invalid registrations on state-by-state basis, will be made available to you at this press conference. The same information will be uploaded to the Commission’s website and social media platforms immediately,” he explained.

The INEC chairman, therefore, described this development as  worrisome, because of the time and resources expended in handling the cases.

He said, “Even more disturbing are the strong indications that some of our staff may be complicit in facilitating these infractions, notwithstanding stern warnings.

“Consequently, the Commission is reviewing reports on such staff and has commenced a detailed investigation, which may include the prosecution of those found culpable. Specific registrants associated with these infractions by our staff may also face prosecution in line with Sections 22 and 23 of the Electoral Act 2022.”

The seemingly disturbed INEC boss, however, sought assistance from the political class and members of the Civil Society Groups for enlightenment.

“I wish to seize this opportunity to request political parties, the media, civil society organisations and the general public to assist the Commission in educating Nigerians about the problem of invalid registration.

“As we have repeatedly explained, if you had at any time in the past registered to vote, you do not have to reregister. If you have registered in the past, you should not get involved in the CVR again unless you have had problems with your PVC or fingerprint recognition during accreditation in any previous election.

“In that case, all you need to do is to revalidate your registration by visiting a designated registration centre to recapture your fingerprints and picture. Other registered persons, who may also get involved in the CVR are those whose PVCs are missing or defaced; those whose details need correction and those seeking to transfer from their current places of voting to other locations.

“These cases do not involve new registration. Apart from these, the CVR is essentially for Nigerians, who have attained the age of 18 years and have not registered earlier,” he disclosed, adding that with the  improved systems using the ABIS, the Commission shall continue to clean up the register to eliminate invalid registration and ensure that only those who should be in the Register of Voters are included.

Yakubu maintained that, “It is precisely the introduction of this more robust system that has enabled us to improve our ability to detect these invalid registrants. We also suspect that some of these invalid registrations may have arisen out of ignorance.

“Consequently, the Commission is establishing a dedicated Help Desk for people, who need information about the CVR. Kindly use the Help Desk if you are in doubt about your registration status or whether you should register or not. Furthermore, citizens, who have no access to the internet can ask the Registration Officer at the Registration Centre before proceeding. You can contact the Help Desk by phone as well as our various social media handles.”