Field operations of the Independent National Electoral Commission had always been hampered by inadequate staff strength – majority of whom were usually ad hoc since inception in 1999.
Shortly before the 2019 general elections INEC Chairman recruited ONE MILLION (1 million), ad hoc personnel workforce which he insured to augment its a little over 16,000 staff strength which was most inadequate!
Most of the ad hoc staff were drawn from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), to ensure that the integrity of polls would not be compromised nor elections manipulated by unscrupulous politicians who were always bent on rigging elections in their favour.
Precisely on 28th June 2021, INEC deployed 5,346 personnel to 2,673 registration centres for Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) which resumed nationwide.

To further facilitate smooth registration the chairman introduced INEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED), and also an online registration portal for the exercise during a meeting with media executives.
IVED - an Android tablet was to be substituted in place of the existing Data Capturing Machine used for CVR in previous exercises.
Previously, INEC had 1,446 registration centres where it registered 14.2 million voters between 2017 and 2018 but eventually doubled the centres, to harvest 20 million registrants and increase the number of registered voters to 100 million before the February 2023 General Elections.

ITS ONE WHOLE YEAR OF CVR EXCERCISE, YET REGISTRANTS RUSH TO AVOID DISENFRANCHISEMENT!

Continuous Voters Registration (CVR), according to INEC's Timetable should stop 30th June 2022 but due to public outcry, pressure from all stakeholders CSO's, NGO’s, House of Representatives members etc, INEC has agreed to extend the EXCERCISE but not for 60 days as being demanded because the Electoral Time Table would be grossly disrupted!!

On 20th June 2022, an Abuja High Court issued an interim order restraining INEC from going ahead with its plan to end the ongoing voter registration exercise on June 30 in view of an application for an interim injunction by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and 185 other concerned Nigerians.

WHAT COULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE LATE MAD RUSH?

According to INEC most Nigerians were usually nonchalant and lackadaisical to respond in obedience to civc responsibilities or being constitutionally-compliant.
On Saturday 11th June 2022, INEC, YIAGA Africa and the European Union organised a concert to encourage Lagos youths to collect their Permanent Voters Cards (PVC), to avoid DISENFRANCHISEMENT in an effort which has sent strong signals to all Nigerian Youths who have greater population!
A population of over 200 million people is so intimidating to the Independent National Electoral Commission Staff strength of ONE MILLION (including AD HOC)! INEC has become overstretched in its constitutional duties to conduct elections all over the country and for this indisputable reason in every FOUR years thousands of thousands running into millions of the electorate are disenfranchised because of lapses in INEC’S administrative organogram and in most cases elections are labelled as inconclusive.
By all International standards Nigeria cannot be categorised as functional/effective democracy because all governments from 1999 to date had , deliberately adapted the Oligharchy system which shut out majority of the people and deprived them of all basic amenities of life according to the unitary Military Constitution bequeathed to greedy politicians all in the name of A CORRUPT PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM!
In spite of Nigeria's annual population growth of 2.61% according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics figures, about 36.6 million ( ie.16.8% aged between 15 and 35), are disenfranchised YOUTHS who have been denied basic education and were completely oblivious of democratic realities or dividends!

ALL UNREGISTERED NIGERIAN YOUTHS SHOULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE OPEN WINDOW TO REGISTER AND ENSURE THAT THOSE WHO HAVE JUST ATTAINED THE AGE OF 18 SHOULD ALSO REGISTER TO EXERCISE THEIR FRANCHISE IN THE REFERENDUM THAT WILL PRODUCE A BRAND NEW UNICAMERAL PARLIAMENTARY CONSTITUTION WITH WHICH INEC WILL CONDUCT THE 2023 GENERAL ELECTIONS THAT WILL PRODUCE A PRIME MINISTER!


I am, yours sincerely, Dr. David B.A. Olufon, 08130669886, 08080243066. G-mail-dvdolufon@gmail.