According to a statement made on Tuesday by the Independent National Electoral Commission, inmates in the Nigerian Correctional Centers may be able to exercise their right to vote in the general election of 2023.
This was said by INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu when he hosted Haliru Nababa and his team at INEC’s Abuja headquarters. Nababa is the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Correctional Service.
Yakubu stated that it is past time for prisoners to exercise their right to vote and cited a High Court decision in Benin City that supported inmate voting.
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He added that the electoral body is devoted to diversity, which includes allowing prisoners to exercise their right to vote.
Yakubu noted that inmates’ voting rights have been recognised in some African countries, and Nigeria is ready to follow that path.
The INEC boss said, “Let me start with the Legal Framework. Section 12, sub-section 1 of the Electoral Act 2022 lists five qualifications for registration as a voter in Nigeria because you have to register as a voter before the right to exercise that right is conferred. That section of the Electoral Act has at least 5 qualifications.
“Number one, the prospective registrant must be a Nigerian citizen. Number two, he or she must be 18 years of age, at least. Number three, he or she must originate, reside or work in the local government or be covered by the registration centre or the point of registration. Number four, that citizen of Nigeria must present himself or herself to the registration officer for registration and support. And number five, which is critical to our discussion today, is that he or she must not be subject to any legal incapacity to vote under any law, rule, or regulation imposed in Nigeria.
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“This is one area that we need to discuss so that we know the categories of inmates that will exercise the right to vote and I’m happy that you came with your Director, Legal. We, therefore, need to work things out carefully. We want transparency in the process. Because everything that we do in the Commission, particularly when it comes to the rights of citizens to vote, must be done transparently.”
Speaking on location for polling units for inmates, politicians campaigning for them and the inmates being educated on voting, he said, “The sooner we’re able to address these issues, the better for the process. But remember, we have only a little over seven months to the next general election. But the next general election is not going to be the last election conducted by Nigeria. So, even if we don’t meet all these critical thresholds in 2023, we’ll continue with a discussion to see what happens beyond 2023.”
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