… Good policy, wrong timing – Yiaga Africa
ABUJA – The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced plans to conduct a comprehensive nationwide voter revalidation exercise in preparation for the 2027 general elections.
The directive, communicated through an internal memo dated March 2 and signed by INEC Secretary Dr. Rose Oriaran-Anthony, was sent to all resident electoral commissioners across the country.
According to the memo, the exercise is aimed at ensuring a “credible and up-to-date voter register,” a priority highlighted during the commission’s strategic retreat held in Lagos earlier this year.
INEC plans to adopt a hybrid model for the revalidation, allowing citizens to participate, both online and at physical centres.
Physical centres will be set up across local government areas, registration areas, and polling units nationwide.
To facilitate smooth operations, the commission will deploy INEC Voter Enrollment Devices (IVEDs), assigning two devices per local government and one device per registration area and polling unit.
Each device will be staffed by a combination of INEC personnel and members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), with two personnel assigned per device.
Preparatory activities for the exercise are already underway.
Voter education and public awareness campaigns commenced on March 1 and are scheduled to run until June 5.
The first phase of the physical revalidation at the local government level will take place from April 13 to May 2.
This will be followed by revalidation at registration areas from May 5 to 11 and at polling units from May 13 to 19.
The printing of permanent voter cards (PVCs) for newly registered voters is scheduled for June 4 to July 3, with PVC collection at registration areas set for November 18 to 24. Additionally, INEC will generate a PDF register for revalidated voters over 14 days, starting June 15.
The printed display of the voter register will run from July 7 to 20, and registers will be publicly displayed at registration areas from August 18 to 24.
The final register of voters for the 2027 elections will be published and presented on December 15.
This is in advance of the presidential and national assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, and the governorship and state assembly elections set for February 6, 2027.
Dr. Oriaran-Anthony urged resident electoral commissioners to complete all necessary preparations, including sourcing additional personnel, configuring enrollment devices, and ensuring proper logistics, to guarantee a seamless and credible revalidation process.
The exercise underscores INEC’s commitment to strengthening electoral integrity and addressing concerns over the accuracy of the voter register, which has been a recurrent issue in previous elections.
Meanwhile, a Civil society organisation, Yiaga Africa, has described the proposed nationwide voter revalidation exercise by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as a sound policy introduced at the wrong time.
The organisation’s Executive Director, Mr Samson Itodo, in a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja, acknowledged the urgent need to sanitise Nigeria’s voter register by removing errors, duplicate entries and names of deceased persons.
He noted that while the planned revalidation exercise represents a commendable step towards improving the credibility of the register, its timing raises serious concerns.
“The much-talked-about INEC revalidation exercise is definitely a great approach to clean up the register. However, the timing of the exercise is deeply problematic,” Itodo said.
According to him, key details of the exercise, including its framework, scope, procedures and implications, are yet to be made public, a situation he warned could undermine transparency and public confidence.
He stressed that voter revalidation carries significant political and electoral consequences, making proper timing and openness critical to its success.
“This is a case of a good policy implemented at the wrong time. The 2027 electoral cycle already has one of the most compressed timelines for electoral activities, and it is evident that the system is overstretched,” he added.
Itodo pointed out that continuous voter registration is still ongoing, while political party primaries are expected to commence in the coming weeks. He also cited delays in the release of funding to INEC as an additional strain on the commission’s preparations.
He warned that introducing a nationwide revalidation exercise under such conditions could overwhelm the electoral system, create confusion among voters and potentially suppress participation, particularly among citizens who may not fully understand the process or miss the revalidation deadline.
The Yiaga Africa director urged INEC to proceed with caution and reconsider the timing of the exercise, suggesting that the most suitable period for such an undertaking would be immediately after the general elections.
“At that time, there will be sufficient room for proper planning, stakeholder consultation, public sensitization and effective implementation without jeopardising the credibility of the electoral process,” he said.
He emphasised that while cleaning up the voter register remains critical to electoral integrity, it must be carried out in a manner that strengthens, rather than disrupts, the overall election timetable.
