INEC: Prisoners To Participate In 2019 Election

For the first time since voting began in the country, the Independent National Electoral Commission says it is making plans to give prisoners the opportunity to vote in the 2019 general elections.

The Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said this in Abuja on Tuesday at a discourse session with the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room Dialogue.

Mahmoud said the commission in collaboration with the Nigeria Prison Service was looking at the possibility of creating polling to create room for inmates to cast their vote.

The INEC boss however said there are categories of prisoners that would not be allowed to participate, depending on the nature of the crimes they committed.

This comes three years after a Federal High Court in Benin, Edo State, ruled that prisoners in Nigeria have the right to vote in all elections conducted in the country.

Yakubu said, “We have already engaged the Comptroller-General of Prisons and we have statistics on the number of prisoners nationwide and the number of inmates that are registered. We are looking at the possibility of creating polling units in the prisons and to enable some categories of prisoners to vote.

“Ghana does it but there are some categories of prisoners who by the nature of crimes committed lose the right to vote. Whatever we can do to open up the process to ensure that as much as possible Nigerians are given the opportunity to vote, will be done.”

Speaking on the November 8th Anambra governorship election, Mahmoud said the commission would do all it can to ensure the election is not inconclusive.

According to him, the high level of non-compliance to the Electoral Act by the political parties was threatening the electoral system.

He pointed out that two political parties were guilty of wrongful substitution of names of governorship candidates, though he declined to name the parties.