The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on Tuesday, 11 November 2014 bowed to public pressure and postponed the creation of additional 30,000 polling units until after the 2015 general election. In a statement, INEC said its decision was based on reports sent in from states by Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) on reconfiguration of the polling unit structure and creation of additional polling units, the controversy over creation of additional polling units that has been overheating the polity, and inadequate time for the exercise in view of the timetable for the 2015 general elections. The commission will, therefore, continue with the use of voting points, where necessary, to mitigate population pressure in overcrowded polling units during the 2015 elections. Poling units will be relocated from unsuitable locations to enclosures such as classrooms, rather than in open spaces, wherever possible.The suspension of the exercise till after the elections is a welcome development, but it does not put an end to controversies surrounding the preparation for the 2015 general elections. There are several issues that INEC needs to address, the most import of which is the distribution of the permanent voter cards (PVCs).There are several thousands of PVCs that are yet to be collected. The distribution of the PVCs has left much to be desired. The exercise has failed in many states. Ordinarily, the process seems to be very simple and easy. It involved registered voters cross-checking their names in the displayed Voters' Register and collecting permanent voter's cards in exchange for the old temporary ones they hitherto had. In Lagos, despite the declaration of a public holiday to enable workers obtain the permanent voter's cards in the areas INEC approved, thousands of voters claimed that neither INEC officials nor the PVCs were available in the designated areas. The situation was so bad that some residents took to the streets to protest. They took the protest to the Lagos office of INEC, to vent their anger and frustration over the exercise. The exercise in some parts of the state was postponed. There were also protests in Imo and Rivers states.In Edo State, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Baritor Kpagih, disclosed that 4,658 voter's cards were stolen in nine local government areas of the state during the distribution of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVC). Although Kpagih disclosed the names of the affected local government areas as Orhionmwon, Etsako West, Ovia North East and six others, he did not disclose how and when the voter cards were stolen. The situation was so bad in Plateau State that the governor took a full page newspaper advert to explain the gory details in the hope to catalyse INEC to meaningful action. The governor could not find his name in the register.There have been accusations about the intention of INEC. This is because the exercise has been shoddily conducted. The leaders of the main opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), have also accused INEC of conniving with the ruling Peoples Democratic Party to disenfranchise citizens in APC-strong states.INEC needs to explain the disparity between the list of registered voters and the number of voters with PVCs in a more detailed manner. This is particularly essential to allay the fears of states ruled by opposition parties. It also needs to explain why it is unable to provide the cards in several states where it has carried out the PVCs distribution exercises. It owes Nigerians an apology for asking them to go to centres to collect PVCs when the cards were not ready. INEC must also ensure that no single Nigerian eligible voter is disenfranchised as a result of its failure to carry out its responsibilities. This means that registered voters without PVCs should be re-registered and offered the opportunity to vote. Every eligible registered voter must be given PVC.Furthermore, it is not clear to the electorate that INEC plans to conduct a biometric verification exercise using card-reading machines. So far, it has only suggested this by the reference to the use of card readers. In other words, the voting procedures should be elaborated for prospective voters' education repeatedly to avoid delays, avoid disenfranchisement of a large number of voters and to reduce cases of invalid votes during the elections.INEC should immediately publish the Consolidated Voters' Register, so that voters can check their status. In this regard, it is good that it has provided opportunity for citizens to check their names through phones or computers online. It needs to be repeated that the great difference between the number of registered voters and the number of PVCs available, coupled with the huge number of uncollected PVCs, needs to be explained.We hope that INEC would learn from its failures to improve upon its thoroughness and painstakingness in managing the registration exercise. A good and comprehensive voter registration exercise is essential for free, fair and credible elections come 2015.
Click here to read full news..
