The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday, in Abuja, said it would roll out a continuous voter registration after the April elections. INEC chairman, Attahiru Jega, disclosed this at the Civil Society Pre-election Conference with the theme ‘Nigeria’s 2011 Elections: Challenges and Opportunities’, organised by the National Democratic Institute. Mr. Jega said the inability of some eligible voters to come out at all and lateness of others to the exercise was unfortunate. According to him, “immediately after April elections we will roll out a continuous voter registration and people who missed out can register.” He said the reason INEC bought 132,000 Direct Data Capture (DDC) machines, an estimated 10 per cent more of the projected polling units, was because the commission knew the law provided for continuous voter registration. “We will have the capacity to be able to effectively deploy these for a continuous voter registration,” Mr. Jega added. The INEC boss said the commission might not conduct the exercise in each polling unit, adding that discussions on logistics and framework were under way to see how best to do it. He noted that previously, the continuous exercise was tried at the local government level, but it failed. He said the commission was considering bringing it to the 8,809 wards, saying many DDC machines will be deployed. Mr. Jega further warned the electorate against multiple registration, promising to deal with electoral impunity. The president of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Joseph Garba, said lack of determination to prosecute political impunity has continued to hamper the progress of the electoral process. He warned the public that those who were caught with multiple registration would be charged to court.
Feb112011