The Independent National Electoral Commission has stated that it is incapable of removing the names of deceased people from the voter lists due to a lack of credible data on births and deaths on which to base such removals.
This suggests that Nigeria’s voter registry may be skewed ahead of the 2023 national elections. Some parties have claimed that there are numerous registrations and underage people on the list, which has exacerbated the situation.
They stated that a flawed register might jeopardize the election’s credibility and cause the commission to incur extra costs, as the commission may be required to create ballot sheets for eligible voters.
Festus Okoye, the chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, told a Punch correpondent in an interview that the commission could not erase names at will. As a result, he appealed all Nigerians to assist the commission in its efforts to tidy up the country.
Okoye said, “The commission displays the voter register for claims and objections but few Nigerians pay attention to the process. Nigerians must assist the commission to clean up the voter register by coming forward to point out deceased individuals or those that are not supposed to be in the voter register.
“Secondly, the country does not have reliable data of births and deaths and the commission cannot engage in arbitrary removal of the names of individuals it suspects are deceased.
“Our new software currently in use has been robust and has been detecting multiple registrants. We as a people and as a country must not condone and or connive in community aided and politically motivated under age registration. This commission is resolved and determined to prosecute all electoral infractions.”
Source: NaijaOnPoint.com
