2023 election: Why INEC failed to clean up dead politicians from voter register

INEC does not have enough funds to carry out clean-up exercise- Source

Months after the 2019 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has failed to remove the names of deceased government officials from its voter register despite promising to do so after the previous general election.

Recall that INEC signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Population Commission (NPC) in 2018 for NPC to provide names of dead voters to the electoral body.

However, an exclusive report by The Punch, stated that checks showed that several notable figures such as former governor of Bayelsa State, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, who died on October 10, 2015, and had Voter Identification Number 90F5AF9CA1295190857, was still registered to vote at the Agbesi open space polling unit in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.

A former governor of Kaduna State, Patrick Yakowa, who died in a helicopter crash on December 15, 2012, is still registered to vote at the UNG Madaki polling unit, while a former Minister of Information, Prof Dora Akunyili, who died of cancer on June 7, 2014, is also registered to vote at Agulu 2 polling unit in Anambra State. Akunyili’s VIN, 90F5B162BC295703414, is still valid on the register.

The immediate past Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, who died of COVID-19 complications on April 17, 2020, is still registered to vote at the Presidential Villa/Police Affairs Commission polling unit. His VIN, 90F5B797C296828047, shows that he is still eligible to vote.

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A former Minister of Women Affairs, Aisha Alhassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba, who died in May, is also registered to vote at the Lamorde Primary School polling unit, Taraba State. The Punch reported.

The Punch also reported that an anonymous source said the commission does not have enough funds to carry out the exercise.

Also speaking with The PUNCH, INEC National Commissioner for Voter Education and Publicity, Festus Okoye, said he was aware of the development, adding that Nigeria did not have adequate data of dead people.

On why notable persons had not yet been removed from the register, Okoye said when the voter registration was suspended, INEC had planned to clean up the register, but the COVID-19 pandemic happened and the commission subsequently shifted its focus to expanding voting by creating more polling units.

This story was written by the Punch Newspaper