REC Blames Poor Voter Education For Electoral Flaws

The INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Delta State, Mrs Gesila Khan, has blamed flaws in the country’s electoral process on poor voter education.

Khan also identified absence of a functional and sustainable political culture as contributory to the electoral pitfalls, which often led to controversies and agitation after every election.

She spoke  in Asaba  at the opening of a one-day voter education workshop for principals of secondary schools in the state.

She noted that elections in Nigeria had been characterised by violence, destruction of ballot boxes, ballot box-stuffing, incorrect voting, and falsification of results as well as use of under-age voters and inducement of electoral officers.

The REC said the workshop was therefore meant to enlighten the electorate with a view to producing politically articulate citizenry necessary for the growth of democracy.

Khan said that it was also conceived by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as part of its voter education programme in secondary schools.

“It is believed that by institutionalising voter/civic education through primary and secondary schools, where our children pass through, the potentials of generating keen political interest and right electoral values on them would be most expedient.

“It is imperative that for any democracy to thrive, the citizenry must possess the necessary skills, display the right values, believe and be willing to participate actively in the electoral process.

The REC said that much was expected from the principals in ensuring the success of the voter education programme.

“As a dynamic process that involves everyone in a society, especially those of voting age, voter education should be seen and propagated as a tool to empower citizens to assert commitment to the values of democracy”, she added.

Khan urged the school heads to support INEC to build a strong, well informed and enlightened electorate, capable of making informed choices during elections and refrain from all forms of electoral vices.

She advised them to critically examine various ideas “and come up with more strategies on how voter education could be effectively and efficiently disseminated to the students’’.