Voter registration in Osun, Ekiti begins March 12, says INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said voter registration in Osun and Ekiti states will bgin on March 12 in preparation for the governorship elections.

INEC’s Director (Voter Registration) Emmanuel Akem broke the news yesterday at a Stakeholders’ Forum on the “Status of Continuous Voter Registration (CVR)” in Abuja.

He said the exercise would enable the commission to accommodate complaints arising from voter registration.

Akem said the commission would use Registration Area Officers (RAOs) at ward levels, adding that INEC might use mobile platforms to register voters.

He said the CVR would correct some of the anomalies detected in the 2010 voter register, stressing that the CVR was not for those that could not register in 2010.

Akem said: “We want to use the opportunity of the CVR to correct mistakes in terms of biometrics in the previous registration. The choice of the registration centres at the wards is to increase participation.”

He said those who could not register at the wards could come to INEC local government offices to register.

Akem said the commission would comply with the Electoral Act which imposes N100,000 fine on any person involved in multiple registration.

The Country Director, Action Aid International, Dr. Hussaini Abdu, said the credibility of the voter registration was a major determinant of a credible election.

Abdu said civil society organisations had been clamouring for a credible voter register since 1998.

He said the country had not voted with a permanent voter card since 1999, adding that the development informed the civil society groups’ call for the proposed Electoral Act.

Abdu said INEC was approaching the CVR in a seasonal manner.

He said: “You do not need a particular date to secure an international passport. You just walk into the office of the Immigration Service and apply for one as long as you meet the requirements.

“That is the same way voter registration should be done. CVR, as the name implies, should be continuous.”

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the event was organised by the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and four other international agencies.