2015: Senate tells INEC to ensure IDPs cast votes

The Senate on Tuesday urged the Independent National Electoral Commission to explore all administrative means to ensure that Internally Displaced Persons in the country voted in the 2015 general elections.

A resolution to that effect was passed by the upper legislative chamber, which directed the commission to do everything possible to carry out the responsibility.

The resolution was sequel to a Bill sponsored by Senator Ali Ndume (PDP-Borno) and presented at plenary.

Pushing a case for the bill, Ndume said it was intended to ensure that the IDPs, spread across the country as the result of insurgency in the North East, were not prevented from voting during the elections.

According to him, Section 42 of the Electoral Act required an amendment, which would include a provision for the establishment of special polling units for IDPs.

The section empowers the electoral commission to explore all legitimate means to ensure that all qualified voters were made to cast their votes at election.

In his contribution, Senator Ita Enang (PDP-Akwa Ibom) said that only an administrative mechanism was apt in handling the issue, adding: “That the Bill seeks to do is contained in Section 42 of the Electoral Act.”

Aligning himself to Enang’s submission, the Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, said the Bill could only provoke thoughts on why the IDPs must not be disenfranchised on election days.

Ekweremadu said: “It is the responsibility of INEC to ensure that these people who are eligible voters are provided with special polling units in their camps to exercise their rights to vote.

“This is purely an administrative issue but we can use our powers here to mandate INEC not to trivialise that portion of the Electoral Act.

“It could be used as a standard to measure the electoral process when the chips are down.

“So efforts must be taken to block all loopholes,’’ he said.

Senator Ayogu Eze (PDP-Enugu) said that the commission should liaise with the appropriate authority to take inventory of actual number of eligible voters that were displaced.

Also supporting the bill, Senator Maina Lawal (APC-Borno) said that it was important to compel INEC to capture eligible voters who were currently displaced in order to cast their votes in the 2015 elections.

Lawal said: “Many contestants are banking on the votes from the North East region to sail through their contests.

“So, it would not be fair if that region is cut-off because the people are no longer in points where they registered to participate in the elections.”

Commenting, the President of the Senate, David Mark, said that the Bill should be “saved” by converting it to a resolution.

“The most important aspect of the proposed Bill is to ensure that eligible voters who are displaced presently are made to vote,” Mark said.