CVR: Dogged by Controversy, Allegations of Disenfranchisement 

As the ongoing Continuous Voters Registration is about wind up after several extensions, David-Chyddy Eleke in Anambra reports that it has been dogged bycontroversy including allegations of disenfranchisement, bribery, and even discovery of stacks of buried printed voters card 

In February 2023, Nigeria is expected to hold a general election to elect a new set of leaders in the states, state assemblies and national assembly, including a new president for the country.

 Preparatory to it, the continuous voters registration has been on for people, including those who just attained voting age to get their permanent voters card (PVC). Also, people whose cards were lost or damaged will also be applying for new ones, while some voters will be transferring their voting points to new locations.

The exercise has however been dogged by controversy as there has been allegations of request for bribe, plot to systemically disenfranchise some people in some areas through shortage of manpower, deliberate setting of the registration machines to accommodate only few persons per day, among several others.

Anambra has also had its fair share of such allegations too. Early this month, a video surfaced on the social media, of intending registrants who were at Onitsha North Local Government Area of Anambra State for registration, but were turned down. 

The intending registrants, who were mostly young people, resorted to making a video of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials who denied them registration. They alleged that only a few people had been registered in a day, yet the officials stopped the exercise. 

The intending registrants also complained that they were being asked to pay as much as N20,000 before they can be registered. They protested the decision, while also panning their camera around to show a huge crowd of persons who had also come to register, but were abandoned.

For the registrants, the disenfranchisement can be tied to the widespread fear following the growing popularity of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi, which led to the recent quest by millions to get their PVCs.

Some people have linked part of the plot to the recent discovery of already printed PVCs, which were said to have been found buried in the home of an undisclosed politician. Recall that in Anambra State, some people had previously expressed worry over the difficulty in collecting their already printed cards, while there have been allegation of seamless distribution of such in northern parts of the country, including delivery to their very doorsteps.

Lending credence to fears of plot to rig the forthcoming presidential election, a group, International College of Democracy and Human Rights in a recent letter to INEC, signed by principal officers of the group, including Emeka Umeagbalasi, a human rights activist, and made available to THISDAY in Awka, listed 20 ways prospective voters are being allegedly being disenfranchised and 10 ways of plans to rig the forthcoming election.

The group listed the disenfranchisement plot to include: “Shrinking of delineation of constituencies, registration and voting centers targeted at a particular ethno-religious group or groups on the grounds of their tribe or religion, provision of inadequate manpower and machines for registration and their deployment in non Muslim areas especially South-East and South-South. 

“Among the strategy are also malfunctioning of voters’ registration machines targeted at a particular ethno-religious group/groups in the Northern and Southern areas, discriminatory programming of registration machines using computer command languages or instructions with limited number of registration per day, Non-issuance or discriminatory issuance of PVCs to registered voters.”

The group further alleged that it uncovered secret programming of the registration machines, such that after a certain number of persons are registered, the machine shuts down, and also deliberate and discriminatory policy of capturing minors and other underage in the North.

 The group also alleged that the commission plans to heavily militarise some zones during the election, as well as instigation of group violence and other coordinated attacks against members of a particular voting population on the grounds of their faith and tribe.

The group called on the INEC to address the areas noticed, saying that Nigerians need to be assured of a free, fair and transparent poll in 2023. “We call on INEC to respond to all the issues raised and outlining how to tackle them headlong including reversal of the 20  citizens’ disenfranchisement and 10  election rigging plots outlined.” 

As at the time of filing this report, no reaction from the commission has addressed the concerns raised by the group. But the INEC Public Relations Officer in Anambra State, Mr Reginald Onyeukwu speaking on the allegation of inducement for registration described the video as unreal. 

Onyeukwu said, “That type of thing, we don’t hold it so serious. Those people involved there like the reporter (the person who reported the issue) supposed to grab somebody, one person, get the name of the person, that person’s details and forward it to us, so the management will invite that person and discipline that person. 

“Now, they generalised the issue to all the staff in Onitsha North. How can we accuse and punish all the staff? If you are doing so, you will punish an innocent person.

“Somebody Ikenna called me and I told him to go back there and get somebody’s details and forward it to me or to the management so that they will look into it.

“Don’t say staff in Onitsha North did this or that, be specific, know the person. That video can be formulated. It can be a planned crew, like, “if I video you, say that these people said we should pay N20,000. That thing is a planned crew. That is why I don’t want to make any comment on it.

” How can you tell somebody, mainly a student, 20% of the people registering there are students and you tell a student to bring N20,000 for you to register him, is it possible? That video is a planned crew. If I will make comment on that, I will say it is a planned deal, it is not real.”

The commission however reacted to allegation of the discovery of buried  printed PVCs. National Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, Barr Festus Okoye in a press release said: “The attention of the Commission has been drawn to videos trending online of Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) allegedly buried underground in some locations, including the compound of a high-profile Person. 

“The Commission is not taking these allegations lightly. We have commenced immediate investigation and anyone found culpable in this diabolical scheme clearly intended to disenfranchise Nigerians will be sanctioned under the law. Every eligible Nigerian who registered as a voter is entitled to his/her PVC. The constitutional right to vote in any election must never be suppressed or abridged in any way.

“As far as the record of the Commission is concerned, PVCs have been printed for all valid registrants in Nigeria up to 14th January 2022 and delivered to all the states of the federation for collection by voters. We will not allow retrogressive elements to sabotage our efforts. 

“The issues of voter registration, compilation of the voters’ roll and issuance of PVCs are at the heart of any democratic elections and the commission won’t fail to ensure that every eligible citizen who appears in person at the registration venue is registered. We assure Nigerians that the matter will be pursued to its logical conclusion.

“Already, the Commission is reviewing the procedure for collecting PVCs to make it less cumbersome and more transparent. This will be a major topic at the INEC regular quarterly meeting with stakeholders so that working together we can find a lasting solution to the issue.

” Meanwhile, we appeal to those who found the allegedly buried PVCs to deliver them to our nearest state or local government office. This will be their patriotic contribution to the consolidation of our electoral process.”

Despite the assurances, many believe that the commission must do more to gain the confidence of the people, including reacting to allegations of programming registration machines to register limited number of people in states in the south east. 

A public affairs analyst, Mr Eze Leonard said: “We need INEC to assure us that the election will truly be transparent. I must confess that I live in Onitsha, but I’m not aware of extortion of people for registration, but what we regularly witness, especially in Onitsha North Local Government Area is that after registering some people, the officials will say they can not continue.

” That is why we think there is a deliberate attempt to disenfranchise some people. That was what happened on that day in Onitsha. I have visited that registration centre and pretended to try to bribe them for registration, but they rejected. I have even heard that those boys who made that video live in the neighborhood, and INEC plans to arrest them to prove their allegation. But INEC must also deal with other claims,” he said.

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Every eligible Nigerian who registered as a voter is entitled to his/her PVC. The constitutional right to vote in any election must never be suppressed or abridged in any way

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2. Stranded prospective registrants at Onitsha North Local Government Area, Anambra State