The Independent National Electoral Commission and the Nigerian Correctional Service are partnering to secure voting rights for inmates in the nation’s prisons.
This came to the fore during a courtesy visit by the Controller General of the NCoS, Sylvester Nwakuche, to the commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Friday.
Acknowledging the rising demand for extending voting rights to inmates in correctional facilities across the country, INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu said inmates in several other countries, including Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa, are permitted to vote, and noted that Nigerian courts have also ruled in favour of this right.
“We are aware that the right to vote is a human right which cannot be taken away from a citizen on account of time being served in a correctional facility.
“In many parts of the world, including some African countries such as Ghana, Kenya and South Africa, where our officials observed elections, inmates exercised the right to vote,” the chairman stated.
He cited two landmark rulings from the Federal High Court in Benin (2014) and the Court of Appeal (2018), which upheld the rights of inmates awaiting trial to vote.
However, he clarified that the courts emphasised voting as a voluntary act that must be asserted, not a mandatory duty.
INEC, according to the chairman, had previously engaged in discussions with the NCoS to explore modalities for enabling inmate participation in elections.
“We even set up a joint technical committee to review all the issues involved and advise on the way forward. You availed us of data on the locations and types of federal correctional facilities nationwide.
“You also provided us with statistics on the various categories of inmates, the majority of whom are on remand awaiting trial and who may actually be registered voters,” Yakubu noted.
He added that INEC raised practical concerns, including access to correctional centres for registration, creation of polling units, and voter education.