The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said the high level of participation by Nigerians, especially youths, in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) demonstrates citizens’ confidence in the system.
Reacting to recent claims suggesting Nigerians had lost faith in the electoral process, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi, described such assertions as baseless and unfounded.
Oyekanmi explained that the CVR, which commenced on Aug. 18 with online pre-registration, had received overwhelming response.
*“The CVR portal went live at 8:30 a.m. on Aug. 18 and by 3:30 p.m., seven hours later, 69,376 Nigerians had pre-registered, comprising 33,803 males (48.7 per cent) and 35,573 females (51.3 per cent).
“By Aug. 24, just a week later, a total of 1,379,342 had pre-registered online. If the Commission had allowed the CVR to be completed online, that figure would have subsisted.
“However, all those who pre-registered online must complete their registration by physically appearing at their preferred designated centre to have their biometrics and other details captured, in compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, specifically Sections 9(7) and 10(2).
“By Sept. 1, two weeks after the online pre-registration began, 2,532,062 Nigerians had registered online,”* he said.
He added that within one week of the in-person registration beginning on Aug. 25, 72,274 citizens had either completed their online pre-registration or registered physically.
By Sept. 21, five weeks after commencement, 5,385,060 Nigerians had uploaded their details on the CVR portal.
*“In the same manner, by week four on Sept. 19, since in-person registration began, 399,162 pre-registrants had completed the process, while 365,533 Nigerians registered physically, totalling 764,695 in just one month.
“There is no African country with these types of voter registration figures within one month,”* he said.
Beyond CVR figures, Oyekanmi noted that the 2023 general election showed improvements in the electoral process.
He pointed out that it produced the most diverse National Assembly since 1999, with multiple parties winning seats.
*“In the Senate, seven political parties won varying numbers of seats, comprising APC-59, PDP-36, LP-8, NNPP-2, SDP-2, APGA and YPP-one each.
“Similarly, eight political parties won seats in the House of Representatives. They include APC-177, PDP-117, LP-35, NNPP-19, APGA-five, ADC, SDP and YPP-two each.
“For the Governorship elections, APC won 16 States, PDP-10, LP and NNPP-one each.
“In fact, nine political parties won seats in the State Assemblies. They include APC-533, PDP-355, LP-38, NNPP-29, APGA-20, YPP-8, SDP-7, Accord and ADC-one each,”* he said.
He also highlighted recent bye-elections as evidence that Nigerians remained committed to the process.
*“Ironically, some of the most ardent critics of INEC are also in the forefront of calling for electoral reform to transfer local government elections to the same commission.
“Surely, they cannot continue to walk on both sides of the road,”* Oyekanmi said.
(NAN)