The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has said it will be impossible for anyone without a permanent voter’s card (PVC) to vote in this year’s general election.
The INEC chairman belittled the insinuation that PVC would not be necessary for voters to cast their ballots during the forthcoming elections. He said the commission was worried about misinformation and disinformation in social media on INEC’s technological deployments. Yakubu said the problems were compounded by the attitude of some media houses that pick up news bulletins from social media platforms and discuss such on their morning shows and political programmes without reaching out to the commission for necessary clarification.
He added: “One such is the recent viral assumptions that PVC is not required to vote on Election Day. “Let me reiterate the commission’s stance that Section 47(1) of the Electoral Act 2022 clearly states that: ‘A person intending to vote in an election shall present himself with his voter’s card to a Presiding Officer for accreditation at the polling unit in the constituency in which his name is registered. “Therefore, the commission is legally bound to only accept the accreditation of a voter on presentation of a valid voter’s card. “Yakubu spoke at a media briefing organized by the Abuja branch of the National Association of Judiciary Correspondents (NAJUC) with the theme: 2023 General Election: Judiciary and Sustainability of Nigeria’s Democracy, yesterday in Abuja. Yakubu, who was represented by a director in INEC, Dr. Lawrence Bayode, noted that with the enactment of the 2022 Electoral Act, the commission could comfortably deploy technologies for its activities.
The INEC chairman stressed that hitherto, a major challenge the commission faced was the lack of a clear-cut legal framework supporting the deployment of technology, especially in the accreditation of voters and the voting process.
He said Section 47(2) of the Electoral Act (2022) has clearly given legal backing to the use of technological devices in the accreditation of voters, adding that the Act has also removed the restriction on the deployment of electronic voting. According to him, from the positive impact the deployment of technology has had on the electoral process, INEC will continue to leverage the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to enhance election in the country.
Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Justice Minister Abubakar Malami assured that President Muhammadu Buhari remained committed to ensuring that the next general election will be credible. “It is important to note that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is committed to a fair, credible, and violent-free electoral process in the country. “This is evident in Mr. President’s recent assent to the Electoral Act, 2022, which has been applauded by many patriotic citizens, pundits, and the international community,” he said. Represented by his spokesman, Dr. Umar Gwandu, the minister said the task of sustaining the nation’s democracy requires the support of all. He urged Nigerians to shun all vices that are capable of undermining the progress that have been recorded so far.
