By Peace Udugba
The Executive Director of the Centre for Responsive Governance, Ayodeji Ologun, has criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for ending what it describes as the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, arguing that a programme labelled “continuous” should not have a closing date.
Ologun made the remarks on Monday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, while reviewing the just-concluded nationwide voter registration exercise.
According to him, the commission’s approach contradicts the essence of continuous registration and denies eligible Nigerians the opportunity to register whenever they attain the age of 18.
“It is illegal. It is unfair that you call something continuous voter registration and then you put a peg on it by saying it has closed. What justifies the grammatical use of the word ‘continuous’?” he asked.
INEC had extended the CVR exercise by two weeks, shifting the deadline from July 10 to July 26, 2026, following a surge in last-minute applications and calls by civil society organisations for more time ahead of the 2027 general elections.
After the extension expired on Sunday, the electoral commission closed both its online registration portal and physical registration centres nationwide, maintaining that there would be no further extension.
The commission said the decision was in line with Section 17 of the Electoral Act 2022, which requires voter registration to be suspended ahead of a general election. INEC also explained that the closure would allow sufficient time to clean the voters’ register, eliminate multiple registrations and produce Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
However, Ologun argued that Nigeria’s voter registration system remains outdated, insisting that registration should be available throughout the year without opening or closing dates.
“We are living an archaic life in Nigeria.
Voter registration should not have an opening day or a closing day. The same officials responsible for registration are the same people INEC deploys for elections, and that is one of the reasons for the deadline,” he said.
He also questioned the effectiveness of the registration exercise, noting that despite lasting nearly a year—from August 2025 to July 2026—and becoming the longest CVR exercise since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999, it failed to reverse growing voter apathy.
According to him, repeated extensions of the exercise reflected the reluctance of many Nigerians to participate in the electoral process.
“Nigerians are reluctant to register. This confirms concerns by civil society organisations and political observers that voter apathy is increasing. When citizens refuse to participate, only a minority ends up deciding who governs the country,” he said.
Ologun called for a fully digital voter registration system, similar to the online passport application process, where eligible Nigerians can register from their homes, choose their preferred PVC collection centres or have the cards delivered to them.
“Once you’ve clocked 18 years, you should be able to register online, upload your details and indicate where you want to collect your Permanent Voter Card or even have it delivered to your doorstep,” he said.
He also advocated greater integration of national databases, arguing that information already captured by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) should be sufficient for voter registration and other government services.
“I think one of the reasons why we are unifying our data through NIMC is so that one data source can serve multiple government services,” he added.
Commenting on the security of PVCs, Ologun cited the reported theft of uncollected voter cards during a recent attack on a collection centre in Oru Local Government Area of Osun State, warning that such incidents raise concerns about the integrity of the electoral process.
He urged INEC to clarify how stolen PVCs would be invalidated before the 2027 general elections.
Ologun further identified insecurity, uncollected PVCs, internal migration and the challenges faced by students who relocate after graduation as major factors discouraging voter participation.
He maintained that the true measure of a successful electoral process should not be the number of registered voters but the number of citizens who eventually cast their ballots.
According to him, although Nigeria has more than 80 million eligible voters, fewer than 45 million are currently registered.
“Even among those who register, less than half eventually vote on election day. The question is, what happens to those who never come out to vote?” he said.
