Voters’ Registration: INEC’s Looming Rubicon

If the agitation of concerned Nigerians canvassing for fresh voter registration as the only saving grace for the conduct of free, fair and credible election in 2011, is anything to go by, then INEC must be ready to crack a hard nut.

A new voters’ register is not only tagged as an ideal instrument for a commendable electoral process but also an irreversible minimum requirement to make every vote count.

Compared to about 600,000 voters registered by INEC in 2006, a report says that if similar exercise is to be repeated ahead of 2011, the commission should expect to register and verify nothing less than 13 million eligible voters.

The U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr Robin Sanders illustrated the situation when she said, if elections were held in January or February 2011, there would be a need to register and verify the registry of nearly 13 million voters monthly.

“Meaning every day, INEC would need to register or verify the registry of 500,000 voters every hour to be ready,” she observed.

But the biggest challenge on the roadmap to a credible election in Nigeria, according to her, is “shortage of time.”

Social critic Prof. Wole Soyinka noted that the credibility of elections in Nigeria had steadily diminished since the alleged rigged 1964 elections, stating that the only way to avoid the lingering mess was for INEC to compile a new register.

“We must have a new voters’ register, if we must have a credible election in 2011; the current register certainly cannot be the basis for a credible election,” he said.

Soyinka further said that the register was the only foundation for a free and fair election. Similarly, a chieftain of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and former Lagos State Governor, Chief Bola Tinubu, said a reliable, verifiable, dependable, clean, and new voters’ register was the first step to having a credible election.

Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) in its own assessment, also reiterated the need for INEC to embark” on a fresh voter registration if it is serious about conducting elections in 2011″.

According to the party, the old register is in shamble and serious mess, stating that the situation manifested in past elections.

Mr .Timoh Abdullahi, CDC National Director of Operation, stated that the failure to heed the warning could lead to a legal battle in 2011 as “disenfranchised citizens will go to court to protect their rights and this is a battle that cannot be won by INEC”.

According to him, people that have reached the mandatory 18 years stipulated in the Constitution will go to court to stop the election and the court is legally obliged to respect their views because their rights have been trampled upon.

Abdullahi further said that a new voter registration would be the only saving grace for democracy in Nigeria because “such single act of civic responsibility” would ensure the delivery of credible, free and fair election in 2011.

He said that a new register would also address other pertinent electoral problems such as rigging and multiple voting.

Abdullahi therefore advocated that INEC should set up permanent registration centres in all the wards nationwide, noting that continuous registration would be less expensive than the” fire brigade approach” always adopted by the commission.

“People will work there five days a week; it is as simple as that. If you become 18 years today, tomorrow you can approach the centre for immediate registration.

The Chairman of Inter-Party Advisory Council, Dr Godswill Nnaji, in his observation said that the council was not bothered whether INEC called for a fresh registration or clean up of the old one.

Nnaji says what is desirable “is a free, fair and credible election”.

He said the current difficulty facing the commission emanated from long time negligence of relevant authority for refusing to take proper decision at the right time.

Nnaji identified the National Assembly as the foundation of the problem, for delaying the passage of the Electoral Act at the appropriate time.

Moreover, the Secretary to All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) National Convention Committee, Chief Livinus Nwambe, criticised INEC’s option of conducting 2011 elections with the existing voters’ register.

He said that such decision was unacceptable if INEC’s objective was based on achieving a free, fair and credible election in 2011.

“We can’t make any progress with the register that contained the name of dead Jackson and other deceased Nigerians as well as Obama who is not a citizen of Nigeria, talk less of being counted as an eligible voter.

He, however, advised INEC National Chairman Attahiru Jega, not to sacrifice his personal uprightness on the altar of frivolities such as inadequate time or resources.

He said INEC must embark on fresh registration of voters because it was “sacramental to free and fair election in Nigeria”.

Nwambe called on Nigerians not to be deceived that all will be well in 2011 with the current voters’ register.

Though the INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, recognised these yearnings as a strong expectation and desire of Nigerians from the commission, he said such exercise would be one herculean task for his leadership.       .

The critical and urgent challenge identified by Jega includes the dilemma of either compiling a new voters’ register in less than eight weeks or embarking on the process of salvaging the existing register in 16 weeks to commence election in January.

According to him, either of the two presents a very difficult choice, considering the size, population, social and political peculiarity of the country.

Consequently, Jega now says that INEC originally needs nothing less than four months to carry out a fresh voter registration that will genuinely produce a perfect register.

Political analysts say there is the central question of adequate resources for the process, which is not only crucial for procurement of equipment, but also for training and logistics.

Having overcome that hurdle, INEC now looks at the various options of getting competent hands or personnel to run the process.

Jega stated that to conduct a credible voter registration in four months, INEC needed to fully deploy registration equipment in all the 120,000 polling units in Nigeria concurrently.

Based on its analysis emanating from a process of “extensive consultations” with experts on electronic voter registration and logistics, the commission plans to spend about N87. 7 billion to accomplish the task.

As the National Assembly, in collaboration with the executive, appropriated the funds recently, observers believe that the onus of conducting credible elections in 2011 has been passed to INEC.

Nigerians, however, have a cause to remain hopeful if the persistent assurances given by INEC on its readiness for the desired election is anything to go by.

Ayonwande writes for NAN.

Olusola Ayonwade