The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) may
deploy additional machines and ad hoc staff following a request by the House of
Representatives to extend the deadline for voters registration.
Rep Aisha Duku, Chairman, House Committee on INEC, said this
while addressing the House on the outcome of its meeting with INEC during
plenary on Wednesday in Abuja.
The House of Reps had on June 15 directed that the committee
should meet with the electoral umpire following a motion by Rep. Benjamin Kalu
(APC-Abia).
The House urged INEC to extend the voter registration by 60
days.
Recall that the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) was
earlier scheduled to end on June 30.
Duku in her submission, said the electoral umpire agreed on
all its resolutions, including the extension of voters registration.
She added that INEC told the committee that the registration
days would now include weekends with additional hands to ensure a smooth
exercise.
According to her, all the prayers contained in the motions
were approved.
In his motion, Kalu said in April, INEC declared that about
42 per cent of the voter registrations recorded since the commencement of CVR
on 28 June, 2021, were invalid with about 20 million unclaimed Permanent Voters
Cards (PVCs).
He added that the large number of unregistered eligible
voters, willing to be registered as evidenced by crowd seen at various
registration centres, had resulted in congestion.
Kalu stated that if nothing was done to improve the shortage
of voter registration equipment, and extend the deadline for voters
registration, millions of Nigerians would be disenfranchised, which would
jeopardise the integrity of the 2023 general elections.
As part of its resolution, the house, therefore mandated the
Committee on Electoral Matters to engage INEC, to examine and proffer solutions
to the shortage of registration machines and manpower.
The House also urged INEC to deploy an additional 30 voters
registration machines in each local government area, train and deploy ad hoc
staff to improve the shortage of manpower at registration centres.
The House resolved that security should also be provided for
the staff and report back within two weeks.
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