Manny Ita –
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has called for the introduction of “early voting” in Nigeria’s electoral framework to prevent the disenfranchisement of essential workers. Speaking during a consultative meeting between the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and political party leaders in Abuja on Thursday, Yilwatda described election-day workers—including security personnel, medical doctors, journalists, and INEC ad-hoc staff—as the “silent casualties” of the current voting system.
The proposal follows data released by INEC highlighting a “sobering trend” of declining voter turnout, which plummeted from 53.7% in 2011 to a record low of 26.7% in the 2023 General Election. Professor Yilwatda argued through a statement from his media aide, Mr. Abimbola Tooki, that thousands of Nigerians are “effectively disenfranchised on election day because of the very roles they play in safeguarding the process.” He further observed that these individuals are unfairly “counted among those blamed for voter apathy, even though their absence from the polling booth is a direct consequence of national service.”
In response to the recommendation, INEC Chairman Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, acknowledged the merit of the reform but raised significant concerns regarding logistics and public trust. He cautioned against a system that requires ballots to be “warehoused” for later counting, stating such practices could “expose the process to abuse, manipulation and loss of public trust, with fears that ‘huge votes could suddenly appear from somewhere.’”
Beyond issues of transparency, the INEC Chairman highlighted the “heavy financial implications” of implementing early voting, noting that the Commission would likely need to “almost double its electoral materials,” which would drastically increase the national cost of elections. He maintained that until Nigeria develops a system that “enjoys absolute public confidence and is seen as incorruptible, adopting early voting may remain difficult.”
Despite these obstacles, the APC Chairman urged stakeholders to balance credibility with inclusivity. Professor Yilwatda emphasized the necessity of ensuring that no citizen is excluded from the ballot “by virtue of service to the country,” calling for an honest confrontation with the cultural and operational barriers currently hindering electoral participation.
