Former Interior Minister Rauf Aregbesola has admonished the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to synchronise voters’ registers with the National Identification Number (NIN) database.
According to him, the integration of the two databases would help to maintain the integrity and transparency of the country’s elections going forward.
Aregbesola, as learned by Goldennewsng , made the suggestion while presenting the lead paper titled “Towards Free, Fair, and Credible Elections” at the 7th International Conference of the Professional Statisticians Society of Nigeria (PSSN) at Nasarawa State University, Keffi.
The former minister noted that by integrating both databases, the Commission would eradicate the era of underage voting and double registration.
While suggesting other ways to make electoral processes more seamless, Aregbesola appealed to INEC to make it a duty to train political parties on the precise roles they will play in elections and distribution of materials.
He submitted that “I am suggesting a more seamless registration system that will be continuous and terminate only a few weeks before the election, to allow for compilation and printing of cards. This registration should be synced with the National Identification Number (NIN).
“It will automatically eliminate underage voters and the possibility of multiple registrations. More importantly, people should be able to do the registration online, on their own, just like most application processes we have today. They should only go to the INEC office for biometric data capture and card collection only.
The second factor in the electoral process is the delineation of voting constituencies and polling units. This should be population-based. There is also always chaos on election day as voters will be running helter-skelter, trying to find their polling units. There should be a system of notification or personal checks to avoid this confusion.”
