About 45 per cent of completed voter registrations across the country are invalid, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said.
INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this while briefing reporters on the ongoing voter registration exercise on Wednesday at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
“Presently, nearly 45 per cent of completed registrations nationwide are invalid, rising to as high as 60 per cent or more in some states,” he said. “This infraction happened in all states of the Federation. No State is immune from it.
“These invalid registrations will not be included in the Register of Voters. This development is worrisome because of the time and resources expended in handling these cases.”
The INEC chief stated that the electoral umpire remained committed to transparency in the distribution of the registration figures, including the percentages of valid and invalid registrations on a state-by-state basis.
He lamented that the troubling issue of invalid registrations still persists as they were detected while cleaning up the latest registration data.
Yakubu explained that the commission introduced the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) – a more comprehensive and robust system, involving not just fingerprint identification but also facial biometric recognition.
He warned against the re-registration of eligible voters by INEC staff, stressing that any official aiding the process would be prosecuted.
“Even more disturbing are the strong indications that some of our staff may be complicit in facilitating these infractions, notwithstanding stern warnings,” the INEC boss said.
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