Nigeria: Requirements and procedures to obtain a voter card; information on voter cards, including appearance, features; issuing authority and place of issuance (2012-June 2016)
1. Voter Registration
According to the information available on the website of Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Nigerians are qualified to register to vote if they are: citizens 18 years of age and older who have established an "ordinary residence" in a ward or a Local Government Area (LGA) where they wish to vote and are "not subject to any legal incapacity to vote" (Nigeria n.d.f). According to the same source, a citizen can register as a voter in the ward or LGA either where they reside or where they are gainfully employed; indigenous people may vote within the ward or the LGA from which they originate (ibid.). According to INEC, a person "may choose to travel to his LG[A] or state of origin to register" (ibid.).
Article 10 of the Electoral Act, 2010, titled Continuous Registration, indicates that the requirements for a voter to register are as follows:
- … there shall be continuous registration of all persons qualified to be registered voters.
- Each applicant for registration under the continuous registration system shall appear in person at the registration venue with any of the following documents-
- birth or baptismal certificate;
- national passport, identity card or driver's license; or
- any other document that will prove the identity, age and nationality of the applicant. (ibid. 2010)
According to Section 1 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act (No. 2), 2011, INEC stops registering voters 30 days before a general election is held (ibid. 2011). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a senior programme coordinator with the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC), a Nigerian NGO that "works to strengthen democratic governance and citizens’ participation in Nigeria" (PLAC n.d.), stated that Nigeria uses a Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) system, which involves "the periodic registration of voters in the period immediately preceding the general elections so as to prepare the Register of Voters" (PLAC 22 Apr. 2016). According to the same source, "INEC conducts the CVR ahead of elections and has done this after the general elections [1] in 2015, for the Kogi, Bayelsa Governorship elections, as well as the Area Council Elections in the FCT [Federal Capital Territory] in 2016" (ibid.).
According to INEC's website, voter cards are obtained from a registration centre where a person registered as a voter (Nigeria n.d.f). According to a 2015 report on voter registration for the 2015 general elections by INEC, there are 119,973 registration centres across the country (Nigeria 13 Jan. 2015). A list of Registration Area Centres can be found on the INEC website (ibid. n.d.d).
2. Temporary Voter Cards (TVC)
According to INEC, TVCs were issued for the 2011 general elections, and were also used in subsequent elections (Nigeria n.d.e, 4). In his book on electoral processes in the Commonwealth countries, Carl W. Dundas, a retired senior official of the Commonwealth Secretariat who has led electoral support missions to Nigeria (Commonwealth Oral History Project 10 Feb. 2015), writes that from 15 January to 7 February 2011, INEC conducted a new voter registration of all eligible voters in Nigeria for the 2011 general elections, which included the collection of fingerprints (Dundas 2014, 89). Following its observation mission of the 2011 Nigerian General Elections, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), a Washington-based NGO that supports the development of democratic institutions in the world (NDI Dec. 2012, 2,5), published a report indicating that "INEC re-registered all voters using a biometric data system that included a photograph and a complete set of fingerprints. INEC successfully registered 73,528,040 Nigerians in approximately three weeks" (ibid., 7). According to INEC's principles of operation for the 2011 voters' registration, a document published in 2010 preceding the 2011 general elections, "[e]ligible voters will queue in single file at a polling unit for registration in sequence. When it is the voters turn, their textual data will be captured accurately, fingerprints scanned, picture taken and temporary voters ID printed" (Nigeria 4 Oct. 2010, 4). According to the INEC report on voter registration, each registrant was given a unique Voter Identification Number (VIN) (ibid. 13 Jan. 2015).
According to a 2013 press briefing by the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), a Nigerian election monitoring coalition with over 400 member organisations (TMG n.d.), "most" eligible voters were issued TVCs during registration exercises preceding the Anambra state governship elections in November 2013 (TMG 10 Sept. 2013, 5). Further information on the issuance of TVCs could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
Regarding the appearance and security features of the TVC, INEC indicates that TVCs used during the 2011 elections were "cold-laminated" (Nigeria 7 May 2013). The Nigerian website GoVote.ng, which provides information to voters and is supported by the Ford Foundation, states that a "PU number" is found on the top right of the TVC (Govote.ng n.d.). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response. A sample of a TVC, obtained from the INEC website, is attached to this Response (Attachment 1).
Further information on the appearance and features of TVCs could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
3. Permanent Voter Cards (PVC)
According to the Nigeria's Minister of Information, "following the successful conduct of the nationwide voters registration exercise in 2011, INEC proposed to print 73.5 million permanent voter cards to replace the temporary cards it issued during the last voters registration exercise" (TVC News n.d.). Sources indicate that INEC began the roll-out of PVCs in 2012 (VoA 25 Mar. 2015; IFES n.d., 2). In a statement issued in May 2014, INEC reports that PVCs were to be used for the first time during the 2014 governorship elections in Ekiti state [held on 21 June 2014] and in Osun state [held on 9 August 2014] (Nigeria 20 May 2014). According to the statement, TVCs would no longer be accepted during these governorship elections (ibid.). Information provided on INEC's website indicates that between 7 and 9 March 2014, the Commission distributed PVCs in Ekiti and Osun states to persons whose biometric data, including a record of at least two fingerprints, were captured during the 2011 pre-election voter registration (Nigeria n.d.g). The same source reports that a voter registration exercise for new voters in the states of Ekiti and Osun was also conducted from 12 to 17 March 2014 (ibid.).
According to a factsheet on voter cards prepared by INEC for the 2015 general elections, PVCs replace TVCs, and "only voters who have their PVC will be allowed to vote in the 2015 general elections" (ibid. n.d.b). The same source indicates that INEC "produced PVCs for the 68,833,476 persons in the biometric Register of Voters ahead of the March 28th and April 11th, 2015 general elections" (ibid.).
3.1 Procedures to Obtain the PVC
According to the INEC's Guidelines for Permanent Voter Card Distribution 2014, a person is eligible to receive a PVC if he or she
- has registered before
- is in the register of voters displayed
- has a temporary voter card (TVC)
- has lost his/her TVC but his/her identity can be confirmed.
- Is physically present at the collection centre. There shall be no collection of PVC by proxy. (Nigeria n.d.a, 2)
The Guidelines state that PVCs will be distributed at the Polling Units and "[t]hose who are unable to collect their PVC during the specified period shall … collect theirs from the INEC office in the LGA" (ibid., 2). According to information available on the INEC website, in order to collect the PVC an individual must present their TVC (ibid. n.d.c, Question 77). If an eligible voter is no longer in possession of their TVC but their name is included in the voters' register, they will be required to fill out an attestation form in order to collect the PVC (ibid., Question 78).
3.2 Appearance and Features
According to information provided on the INEC website, a voter card contains the following information:
- The voter’s name
- The name of the state the voter is registered in
- The name of the LGA
- The Registration Area/Centre and code
- The voter’s Identification number. (Nigeria n.d.f)
A factsheet on the PVCs prepared by INEC also indicates that
[t]hese cards have many components and specialized features (e.g. base substrate, security printing, personalization, lamination and chip embedding), and it is designed with an average life span of ten (10) years.
The PVC has an embedded chip that contains all the biometrics of a legitimate holder (including fingerprints and facial image). … The PVC has security features that are not easily susceptible to counterfeiting. (ibid. n.d.b)
According to the INEC's manual for the 2015 elections, on election day, the PVC and fingerprints of voters were to be verified with card readers (ibid. Jan. 2015, 32). A sample of the front page of the PVC as shown in INEC's Publication of the Register of Voters for the 2015 General Elections is attached to this Request (Attachment 2).
4. Voter Registration Fraud
According to INEC, TVCs were "fragile" and "susceptible to abuse" for manipulating elections (Nigeria 7 May 2013). INEC identified 870,000 duplicate applications in the 2011 register of voters (ibid. n.d.e).
According to the EU Election Observation Mission report on the 2015 general elections in Nigeria, "EU experts observed the [voter registration] process to be cumbersome, crowded, and marred by technical and staffing issues, with very few registrants presenting any documentation proving identity and age" (EU July 2015, 16). The same source states that of the 11,464,690 new voters that INEC registered before the elections, the Commission removed 1,551,292 registrations that were either duplicates or did not meet biometric standards (ibid.). A 2015 report on the biometrics verification exercise conducted by INEC during 2011 and 2015 voter registration revealed cases of the same individuals registering to vote under different names (Nigeria 13 Jan. 2015).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
Note
[1] The 2015 general elections included the presidential and National Assembly elections, which took place on 28 March 2015 and the gubernatorial elections, which occurred on 11 April 2015 (EU July 2015, 10).
References
Commonwealth Oral History Project. 10 February 2015. Sue Onslow interviewing Carl Dundas. [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Dundas, Carl W. 2014. Electoral Essays and Discourses. Bloomington, Indiana: AuthorHouse.
European Union (EU). July 2015. European Union Election Observation Mission. Final Report. Federal Republic of Nigeria. 2015. [Accessed 22 Mar. 2016]
Govote.ng. N.d. "PVC Pickup Location." [Accessed 27 Apr. 2016]
International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). 2015. IFES Nigeria Post-Election Survey, July-August 2015. [Accessed 22 Mar. 2016]
National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI). December 2012. 2011 Nigerian Elections. Final Report. [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 8 January 2016. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "INEC Begins CVR in FCT on Wednesday, 13th January." [Accessed18 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 13 January 2015. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Chidi Nwafor. Publication of the Register of Voters for the 2015 General Elections. [Accessed 22 Mar. 2016]
Nigeria. January 2015. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Manual for Election Officials 2015 (Updated Version). [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 20 May 2014. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "Re: 'A Case for e-Card Readers.'" [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 7 May 2013. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Kayode Robert Idowu. "The Economics and Logic of INEC's Programmes." [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 2011. Electoral (Amendment) Act (No.2), 2011. [Accessed 13 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 4 October 2010. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Revalidation Request for Quotation INEC-2010-VR-RFQ002A. [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. 2010. Electoral Act, 2010. [Accessed 13 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.a. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Guidelines for Permanent Voter Card Distribution 2014. [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.b. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Factsheet on Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and Card Readers. [Accessed 13 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.c. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "Frequently Asked Questions." [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.d. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "Registration Area Centres Nation Wide." [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.e. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "Report on the 2011 General Elections." [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.f. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "Voters Information." [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]
Nigeria. N.d.g. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Kayode Robert Idowu."Matters Arising from Ekiti & Osun PVC Distribution, Continuous Voter Registration." [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC). 22 April 2016. Correspondence from a senior programme coordinator to the Research Directorate.
Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC). N.d. "About PLAC." [Accessed 18 Apr. 2016]
Transition Monitoring Group (TMG). 10 September 2013. Text of Media Briefing on Presentation of Report on Continuous Voter Registration in Anambra State Addressed by the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), at TMG Secretariat Abuja, Nigeria on Tuesday, September 10, 2013. [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Transition Monitoring Group (TMG). N.d. "About Us." [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
TVC News. N.d. "Nigeria's FG Approves N2.117bn for INEC to Acquire 33.5m Permanent Voter Cards." [Accessed 20 Apr. 2016]
Voice of America (VoA). 25 March 2015. Abdulwahab Muhammad and Chris Stein. "Will Voter Card System Prevent Election Fraud? Nigerians Are Wary." [Accessed 22 Mar. 2016]
Additional Sources Consulted
Oral sources: European Union – Delegation of the European Union to Nigeria and ECOWAS; International Foundation for Electoral Systems; Member of European Parliament; Nigeria – the Electoral Institute, High Commission in Ottawa, Independent National Electoral Commission; Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room; Nigerian Bar Association; Open Society Foundations; Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre; Professor of political science, Delta State University; Professor of political science, University of Ibadan; senior lecturer, Department of Political Science, Nasarawa State University; Stakeholder Democracy Network; Transition Monitoring Group; US – Agency for International Development.
Internet sites, including: BBC; Canada – Global Affairs, High Commission in Nigeria; the Commonwealth Secretariat; ecoi.net; Factiva; Freedom House; Go Vote; Nairaland; NigeriaElections.org; Parliamentary Centre; Premium Times Nigeria; UN – Refworld; US – Department of State; Vanguard.
Attachments
1. Nigeria. N.d. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). "Voters Status." [Accessed 22 Mar. 2016]
2. Nigeria. 13 January 2015. Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Chidi Nwafor. Publication of the Register of Voters for the 2015 General Elections. [Accessed 22 Mar. 2016]