The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said the proof of child voters and multiple registered voters in its Voter Display Scheme is a sign of its ” commitment to transparency”.
This was disclosed in a statement by INEC on Thursday afternoon after the commission discovered multiple registered voters and those who are below the voting age in its data.
INEC said that by the end of the exercise it hopes to have “improved the quality of register of voters.”
INEC said it commenced publishing the preliminary register of voters on 12th November in its 8,809 registration areas (wards) nationwide.
They added that this is the first time it has published the register online in Nigeria’s history.
INEC stated that the purpose of the display is to enable Nigerians to scrutinize the preliminary register and make claims about misspelling of names, personal details, or missing names ” for persons below the age of 18 years, dead persons, foreigners or those making false claims so that they can be deleted from the register.
They also urged that the foregoing context that recent media reports on the presence of ineligible registrants should be seen.
- “The full display of all registrants speaks to the commission’s commitment to transparency. The fact that these likely ineligible registrants are being identified means that the objectives of the display for claims and objections are being met”.
They urged the general public to follow the procedures and report these requirements are being met.
- “We wish to reassure Nigerians that the commission is committed to transparency and accountability in all its activities,” INEC said.
Display of physical copies: INEC will commence the display of physical copies of the register for claims and objections at two levels, first at the registration area level from the 13th to 18th of November, and at the local government level, which ends on the 25th of November.
Why would the system allow multiple registrations in the first place?
How can someone from Bayelsa identify fake, multiple and underage registrants in Borno, for example? We yearn for a system that embodies accuracy from the first principle, not one that will give the citizens homework.