Civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria(HURIWA), has tasked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to expunge the names of dead persons and child voters from its voter register ahead of the 2023 general elections.
HURIWA, in a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, said anything short of the removal of child voters and dead persons would produce fraudulent polls next year.
The group argued that child voting and the presence of dead persons in INEC database would encourage rigging and vote-buying by moneybag politicians who desperately want to occupy elective office in 2023.
It said, “The preparations of INEC for general elections has not been impressive at all. With the Electoral Act in place although with some legal issues that would be resolved soon, INEC needs to be seen to be in top gears in preparations for the general elections which is around the corner.
“However, it is very clear and disappointing that INEC is just hibernating and not doing much to clean up the National Voter Register to ensure that all eligible Nigerians who wish to be registered are captured and automatically issued their PVCs.
“At the moment, millions of Nigerians have no voter cards and not much is heard from INEC on where to go physically and get the registration done.
“INEC should by now be thinking ahead on the workability of the electronic voters machines and other technologies that are to be introduced or already used in the last Anambra election but did not yield maximum results.
“INEC should conduct security audits of Nigeria and put in place strategies with the security agencies on how to prevent security challenges that always come up during elections.
“INEC should by now have kickstarted enlightenment on voting rights and how to exercise the rights and INEC has not done anything to eliminate child voters that are a disturbing part of elections in most populous northern states like Kano and some riverine states in Southern Nigeria so that the coming election is not contaminated with children voting at elections when adults who are ready to vote are deliberately denied their PVCs.”
