Abuja, Nigeria – Nigeria’s electoral body is pushing to give inmates the right to vote. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced it will work with the Nigerian Correctional Service and the National Assembly to create a clear legal framework for prisoner voting.
INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, said elections are strictly governed by legal provisions and that the country’s ongoing electoral reform offers an opportunity to address the issue. The discussion comes after a courtesy visit from the Controller General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Sylvester Nwakuche.
The debate centres on a clause in the Electoral Act of 2022, which prevents citizens “subject to any legal incapacity to vote” from registering. Professor Yakubu noted that this clause has led to various interpretations regarding inmates, particularly those on death row or serving life sentences.
He highlighted that the Nigerian Court of Appeal has previously affirmed the right of awaiting-trial inmates to vote. The court’s decision referenced the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Nigerian Constitution. The INEC Chairman also noted that countries like Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa already have systems in place for inmate voting, a process Nigerian election observers have witnessed.
The Correctional Service’s Controller General, Mr. Nwakuche, said that 66 per cent of the over 81,000 inmates in Nigeria are awaiting trial and are therefore presumed innocent. He argued that incarceration should not strip them of their civic rights.
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