According to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), a total number of 7,043,594 Nigerians who applied for voter registration did not complete the process before the deadline for the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR).
It was revealed that a total of 10,487,972 eligible voters commenced the online pre-registration process but only 3,444,378 persons completed the exercise physically in line with its policy.
The INEC National Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, gave a breakdown of the exercise in a statement.
His message showed that “4,161,775 citizens attempted but either did not complete online pre-registration or abandoned it and went for the physical registration instead.
“2,881,819 registrants completed the online pre-registration but did not show up to complete the physical Biometric Capture at designated centers before the deadline.”
The electoral umpire was reacting to allegations that seven million Nigerians, who applied for online pre-registration as voters during the last nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) were denied the opportunity to complete their registrations.
The statement reads in part: “The attention of the Commission has been drawn to media reports that some seven million Nigerians who applied for online pre-registration as voters during the last nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) were denied the opportunity to complete their registration and consequently the collection of their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs). This claim is misleading.
“To set the record straight, Nigerians may recall that on 28th June 2021, the Commission introduced the online pre-registration of voters. By doing so, citizens were allowed to commence the registration online and then book an appointment at their convenience to complete the physical Biometric Capture at designated centers. It was a novel idea leveraging technology to ease the registration process.
“This was in addition to the walk-in option at physical centers, where Nigerians can commence and complete their registration simultaneously without going through the online pre-registration procedure.
“In the interest of transparency, the Commission provided weekly statistical updates on the exercise.
“For the online pre-registration, a total of 10,487,972 commenced the process. However, by the deadline of the exercise, 3,444,378 Nigerians completed their pre-registration physically at the designated centers in line with the Commission’s policy. Some 7,043,594 applicants did not complete the registration.”
