“Letting Inmates Vote Could Lead to Organized Election Rigging,” Former IPAC Chair Warns

Former National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Peter Ameh, has cautioned against the proposal to allow inmates to vote in Nigeria’s elections, warning that it could open “a new criminal hub for electoral malpractices.”

Ameh, who stated this while speaking on The Weekend Show, at the weekend, said that the current state of Nigeria’s correctional centres makes inmates highly vulnerable to manipulation by prison authorities and political actors.

The former IPAC national chairman suggested that before considering inmates’ participation in elections, Nigeria should first prioritise Diaspora voting, as Nigerians abroad remain connected to national issues and contribute the highest remittances to the economy.

He also called for broader electoral reforms, including unbundling the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to strengthen its independence, conducting all elections in one day to cut costs, and mandating electronic transmission of results.

“We must get our priorities right. Prison voting, without structural reforms, will only deepen manipulation instead of strengthening democracy,” he warned.

According to him, “allowing them to vote under these conditions would hand undue influence to state authorities who control prisons.”

Ameh also condemned the structure of INEC, alleging that political appointees with ties to the ruling elite compromise its independence.

“It is unfair for a President who will be a contestant in an election to appoint the referee of that same election. This is why INEC has continued to lose public trust,” he noted.

He, therefore, recommended that the appointment of INEC chairpersons and commissioners should be subjected to broader scrutiny by the National Assembly, rather than leaving it in the hands of the President alone.

Ameh, while speaking on the controversial issue of electronic voting, said mandatory electronic transmission of results via the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal must be enshrined in law to restore public confidence.

(The Guardian)