Prof Mahmood Yakubu, Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has sathat the National Identification Number (NIN) would not be a mandatory requirement for voters wishing to register during the forthcoming Continuous Voter Registration CVR.
He explained this at a press conference in Abuja,where he also fixed June 28 as date for commencement of the continuous voter registration ahead of the 2023 general election.
According to him,the National identity card is but one means of identification listed in Section 10 subsection 10 of the Electoral Act and so cannot be singled out and made mandatory, saying that would not be in conformity with the relevant laws.
He said other means of identification include the national passport, birth certificate, drivers license and any other means of identification.
He said the Commission has scheduled the Continuous Voter Registration exercise (CVR) to commence on June 28 across the country.
Prof. Yakubu also revealed that the earlier system of Voter identification known as the Direct Data Capturing Machine (DDC) would now be replaced by a new compact registration devices that will better serve the purpose during elections. The new device known as; the INEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED) he said, is based on an Android tablet.
He said; “The Commission is therefore migrating to the INEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED), which is based on an Android tablet. The procurement of the devices, the modification of the registration software by our in-house engineers to make it compatible with the android operating System, as well as integrating these with the online registration portal require a little time.” he announced.
