INEC to resume continuous voters registration June 28

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will begin a national Continuous Voter Registration on June 28 across the 774 Local Government Areas before the 2023 general election.

The Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, on Thursday, disclosed this during a press briefing held in Abuja.

The Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu

Yakubu declared that that the indefinite suspension of the special election, which took place in Ekiti East subsequent to gunshots, electoral violence, and killing would stay, stating, “if the purpose of election is to kill, the election will remain suspended indefinitely. And when I mean indefinitely, I mean indefinitely.”

He also responded to inquiries on the assault on a previous governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof. Charles Soludo, and the murder of his three aides ahead of the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State.

He said, “Our fears have been heightened and we always cringe whenever there is election violence and we hardly sleep during elections.”

As indicated by him, the registration exercise would be done continuously for over a year until the third quarter of 2022.

The Independent National Electoral Commission had earlier in the year disclosed that the exercise would begin in the first quarter of 2021.

He said, “The CVR could not recommence in 2020 due largely to the COVID-19 pandemic. In line with the general advise by health officials regarding events involving large groups of people, we considered it inauspicious to restart the CVR at the height of the pandemic. In the light of the pandemic, the commission promised the nation that it would recommend the CVR in the first quarter of 2021.

“The first quarter of 2021 ended yesterday (Wednesday) and obviously the commission was unable to restart the CVR exercise. In consideration of these challenges and the measures we have taken to overcome them, the commission is now in a position to announce Monday, June 28 2022 as the date for the recommencement of the CVR exercise nationwide.”