By Harry Awurumibe, Editor, Abuja Bureau
The continued poor turnout of Nigerian voters on the election days across the country has been blamed on the poor performances of elected officials rather than on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
This is the view of Barrister Festus Okoye, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee. He argued that the electoral umpire has no blame in the poor turnout of Nigerian voters on the election days.
Okoye who was a guest of Channels Television breakfast programme ‘Sunrise Daily’ on Thursday, said non-performance of elected officials presented by political parties have led to voter apathy in the country.
According to him: “INEC has no hands in voter apathy, INEC ensures that election processes and procedures are followed to the logical conclusion. It’s not our duty to ensure high turnout of voters on election days. It is the duty of political parties to mobilise their supporters to turn up at polling stations on election days.
“The major culprits, I dare say, are those elected to various political offices over the years. People have lost confidence in the elected officials rather than in the conduct of elections. The trust of voters in their elected officials from local governments, states to the federal levels have waned hence the voter apathy on election days”, Okoye said.
Also speaking on the forthcoming Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) which will commence this June, Okoye said INEC has introduced dual registration format whereby Nigerians can register both in-person and online in accordance with Section 10 of the Electoral Act which prescribes for the physical presence of card seeker.
Said he: “Eligible voters for fresh registration will start the process online and later go to INEC Registration Center to them to authenticate the registration formality. Others who will want to update their information or Permanent Voters Card (PVC) holders who have one issue or another will use the window of CVR to regularize their cards.
On whether National Identification Number (NIN) is mandatory for new persons seeking to get their PVC, the Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, said NIN is not required at all as other identification materials such Drivers License, International Passports, etc, will suffice.
