NASS Should Amend Constitution To Make Voting Compulsory From 18years – Aduwo

The president of Rights Monitoring Group (RMG), a coalition of about 45 civil society organisations, Mr Olufemi Aduwo, has called on the National Assembly to amend the 1999 Constitution and connected laws to make voting a compulsory for all Nigerians from the age of 18 years.

Aduwo, who doubles as the chief executive officer of the Centre for Convention on Democratic Integrity (CCDII), said such amendment would address the problem of voter apathy which has seen a consistent reduction in the number of Nigerians who vote elected representatives into offices.

In a release on Saturday, he also canvassed that Nigerians who would be on critical duties during the 2019 elections, like security personnel, journalists and even officials ad-hoc and permanent staff, should be allowed to cast their early votes, at least a week to the general election.

He said it would not be strange if voting was made obligatory for Nigerians as the practice had been embraced by 22 countries, many of which are in Latin America, with attendant mass participation of citizens in the electoral process.

“Many countries across the globe operate mandatory voting system with consequence for violators. 22 nations around the world make voting mandatory for its citizens, often starting at age 18.

“Several of these countries are in Latin America with a handful allowing citizens to age out of compulsory voting by as early as age 65. In Australia, failure to vote can result in a $20 fine. More than 700m people live in countries with compulsory voting laws,” he said.

Aduwo, who has monitored elections in the United States, United Kingdom, including the Brexit referendum, gave the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) thumbs down on the excuse it gave for the retention of child voters in the voter register.

“2019 elections are already compromised with the excuse given by INEC on the child voter episode. In Taraba State, where there was a bye-election recently, people came to vote in their units and came with the INEC-issued PVCs, but could not find their names on the voter register.

“INEC still has one year to clean up its mess. Nobody is praying for bloodshed in the country. People want free, fair and credible elections.  INEC is not helping matters at all.

“Child voter has been a recurring issue since 2003. Professor Attahiru Jega, Professor Maurice Iwu will confirm this. Every discerning observer knows it is common phenomenon in the North.

“The reason politicians in the North are not condemning the issue of child voters is that all of them are beneficiaries of this madness, both APC and PDP politicians. That is why they have all kept quiet.

“If Professor Mahmud Yakubu as INEC chairman truly said he did not know about it and that investigation would be done, he is only being clever by half and bringing ridicule to himself.

“INEC issued the cards used by those child voters. Someone in INEC earlier said officials of the commission were threatened by the children and that was why they registered them. Can’t INEC delete their names and data before processing their PVCs, since it is sure they are underage registrants,” he stated.

“INEC is not getting it right as we build up to 2019 elections. If INEC in 2011 registered 11m Nigerians, why is it that between 2015 till date less than four million people have been registered? Many Nigerians who have never participated before are eager to register now.

“INEC had about three years to do the register and I wonder why it is faltering like this. INEC says machines are not available and raise the issue of logistics. Where are the machines they used before? Why are the machines not available at the polling units? Why must people go to INEC offices or few designated places to register?” he said.