The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday June 24 announced that the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise will resume on Monday 28th June.
The commission said it has acquired all the required equipment and updated its registration software to ensure successful rollout of the exercise.
The CVR, which was suspended on 31st August 2018 because of preparations for the 2019 General Elections, will continue till August 2022 according to the commission.
Eligibility
Only Nigerians who are 18 years and above and who had never registered,
The commission said It is also open to registered voters who have had any problem during accreditation for any past election with either their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) or their fingerprints not being read by the Smart Card Reader (SCR); those who want to transfer their voting location from one place to another; those who want to correct issues with their data, such as misspelt names or dates of birth; and registered voters whose PVCs are lost or damaged.
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The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu said that “the online registration is a public service and therefore free of charge.
“There is no INEC-approved cybercafe, no online registration centre and no scratch card to be purchased for the exercise.
“All you need is a device, including your mobile phones, that can connect to the internet. Citizens can complete the online pre-registration anywhere and at anytime they choose.
“Just follow the simple but detailed step-by-step procedure on the portal and contact the INEC Help Desk where necessary. The details are on our website.”
The timeline for the CVR schedule as provided by INEC
- Commencement of online registration only: 28th June 2021 – Online through the INEC registration portal (https://cvr.inecnigeria.org or https://cvr.inec.gov.ng )
- Commencement of scheduled appointments for online registrants: 19th July 2021 at INEC State and Local Government offices nationwide
- Commencement of physical CVR: 19th July 2021 at INEC State and Local Government offices nationwide
- Commencement of physical CVR at all other Registration Centres: Date to be determined based on evaluation of security situation – All 2, 673 Registration Centres nationwide.
According to the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the reason for the CVR is for people to commence the registration process online by following the step-by-step procedure to fill the forms, upload pictures, and the required documents and then make an appointment on the web portal for a date and time to visit an INEC State or Local Government office to give their fingerprints and complete the registration.
Yakubu said, “We hope that through this portal, we shall reduce overcrowding at our registration centres, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, make the registration processes generally easier, thereby giving Nigerians a pleasant electoral experience. He added that “No eligible Nigerian will be disenfranchised.”
He explained further: “In exercising its powers under the law, the Commission undertook a fresh registration of eligible voters with every General Election until 2011 when the first reliable biometric register of voters was compiled. Thereafter, the Commission embarked on intermittent registration of voters on the eve of major elections. However, in April 2017, this Commission for the first time began the implementation of registration of voters on a continuous basis as provided in the Electoral Act. As a result, 14,283,734 new voters were added to the register by the time the process was suspended in August 2018 in order to prepare for the 2019 General Election.”
Ifunanya Ikueze is an Engineer, Safety Professional, Writer, Investor, Entrepreneur and Educator.
