INEC to commence voters registration June 28, says NIN not mandatory
By Modupe Shodeinde
The Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) says Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise will commence on June 28.
It stated that its earlier decision to start the exercise in the first quarter of 2021 is no longer feasible.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, made the announcement at a media briefing in Abuja yesterday. He added that the National Identification Number (NIN) is not mandatory for the exercise.
According to him, the project would span for one year, ending in the third quarter of 2022.
However, the focus would be on Anambra State for now, where more centres would be established in view of the governorship election scheduled for November 6 this year.
Yakubu said the CVR in Anambra would be suspended in August 2021. This is to enable the electoral umpire clean up the data for the state and print the Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) for the registrants.
The commission is projected to register between 16 and 20 million Nigerians, with over 2,500 registration centres made available for the exercise.
Speaking on the use of NIN, he stated that such policy was not recognised by the country’s electoral law, the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act.
He said: “NIN is not going to be mandatory for the simple reason that we are operating on the basis of the law establishing INEC. Section 10 of the Electoral Act lists the means of identification to be presented by prospective registrants for the purpose of registration. These include birth certificate, national passport, National Identity Card or any other document that will prove the identity, age and nationality of the applicants.
“The NIN is only one of the means of identification provided for under Section 10 (2) of the Electoral Act. We can’t single that out and make it mandatory. All the other requirements are requirements of the law and we must apply the law equally.”
