INEC insists on use of card readers for 2015 elections, says it’s constitutionall

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega, insisted that only card readers would be used for accreditation of voters for the general elections. 

Jega made this known while briefing the Senate in Abuja on the commission’s preparation for the elections. 

He said that the use of the cards was constitutional, insisting that the commission would not revert to manual accreditation of voters during the elections.

“The use of PVCs and the card reader for the conduct of the elections, we believe, is in accord with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2010 as amended. They were introduced also, pursuant to the powers granted to the commission by the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

“INEC is empowered by Section 16(4) of the Electoral Act, 2010 to and I quote: ‘wherever it considers it necessary, replace any voter card for the time being’. An election is said to be validly conducted if it meets certain basic requirements, including accreditation of voters.

“The use of the card reader for the purpose of accreditation of voters is one of the innovations introduced by the commission to improve the credibility of the electoral process. It is not offensive to the Electoral Act or to the Constitution. It adds value to the desires of Nigerians to have a credible election in line with international best practice.”

 The INEC chairman clarified that the use of the card reader would not amount to electronic voting, explaining that though Section 52 of the Electoral Act prohibits the use of electronic voting, the card reader was not a voting machine. 

According to him, the card reader is only an electronic machine introduced to improve the integrity of the voting process.