The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has announced that prison inmates in Nigeria will soon be granted the right to vote in elections.
This development follows the commencement of formal discussions between INEC and the Nigerian Correctional Service aimed at addressing the voting rights of incarcerated individuals.
The push to enfranchise thousands of imprisoned Nigerians gained momentum on Thursday when the Controller General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Sylvester Ndidi Nwakuche Ofori, paid an official visit to INEC headquarters in Abuja to advocate for inmate voting rights.
Ofori drew attention to the plight of over 81,000 Nigerians currently in custody, noting that more than 66 percent of them are awaiting trial and therefore presumed innocent under the law.
“Anybody can find themselves on the other side of the law. We need to be careful how they are treated. They have rights, and one of those rights is the right to vote. The fact that they are incarcerated should not strip them of their citizenship,” he said.
“I am here to see how we can, even if not immediately, in the nearest future, extend this fundamental right to inmates.”
Responding, Professor Yakubu welcomed the initiative, citing examples from other African countries such as Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa, where inmates are allowed to participate in elections. He also referenced court rulings from 2014 and 2018 which affirmed the voting rights of certain categories of inmates, particularly those awaiting trial.
“Working together, we can seize the opportunity of ongoing electoral reform for a clear legal provision that will specifically cover citizens serving time in our correctional facilities,” Yakubu said.
He added that INEC’s next step would be to engage with the National Assembly to ensure the necessary legal framework is established to support inmate enfranchisement.
