BREAKING NEWS: INEC Rejects Ruling On Temporary Voter Cards Use

The Temporary Voter’s Card (TVC) will be used in this year’s general election, according to a court order, which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been urged to approve.

“INEC has been served a copy of the judgment delivered today (yesterday) by the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, which ordered it to permit two plaintiffs to vote with their Temporary Voter’s Card,” the commission stated in a tweet its verified handle @inecnigeria (TVC).

The commission has started the process of appealing the trial court’s ruling.

The INEC had been instructed to permit the use of TVC in the March 18 governorship and House of Assembly elections by the Federal High Court in Abuja…..Continue Reading 

Yesterday, Judge Obiora Egwuatu issued the ruling in a case brought by two Nigerians who felt they were wronged and wanted to use TVCs in the general election this year in the lack of permanent voter cards (PVCs).

The order, according to Judge Egwuatu, was granted because the claimants had been properly registered and included in INEC’s database.

“An order is made requiring the defendant (INEC) to permit the plaintiffs to cast their votes using the Temporary Voter Cards issued by the defendant, the plaintiffs having been properly included into the database of the National Register of Voters.

“This court declares that the plaintiffs are entitled to vote using their Temporary Voter’s Cards in the upcoming 2023 general election,” he said. “The plaintiffs, having fulfilled all necessary legal requirements to register and having subsequently been captured in the defendant’s (INEC’s) central database and manual, printed paper-based record or hard copy format of the defendant’s maintained Register of Voters.

The judge ruled that because the lawsuit was not brought in a representative capacity, he was unable to approve Prayer Three, which called for allowing every qualified voter with a TVC to cast a ballot.

According to the plaintiffs’ application’s third prayer, Judge Aneke was unable to provide any relief because the lawsuit had not been filed in a representative capacity.

The court further ruled that no part of the law, including the Election Act and the 1999 Constitution, specifically says that only PVCs may be utilized.

He also stated that a voter’s card is provided for by Section 47 of the law, according to the Agency of Nigeria.

Speaking to reporters, the plaintiffs’ attorney, Mr. Victor Opatola, declared that the decision was a triumph for all Nigerians who had to struggle to register to vote, were legitimately registered, but were unable to obtain their PVCs in time for the election.

The Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) must also be promptly reconfigured by INEC in order to prepare for the gubernatorial and Houses of Assembly elections, which will now take place on March 18.

It was decided to postpone the election from tomorrow to give the electoral umpire more time to modify the voting devices.

The commission had stated that the BVAS could only be turned on during a specific election’s date and time, and that since the machines had been used for the February 25 presidential and National Assembly elections, it was now necessary to re-configure them for use during the March 1 governorship and House of Assembly elections.

Although the commission is now able to start preparing the BVAS for the governorship and House of Assembly election due to the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal’s decision, it was emphasized that it was far too late for the reconfiguration to be completed.

But, Rotimi Oyekunmi, the Principal Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, assured The Nation that the machine reconfiguration would begin in earnest and be finished in time for the gubernatorial and House of Assembly election.

When a reporter questioned Oyekunmi about the start time of the exercise, he responded, “Let me not tell you when we will start the reconfiguration of the equipment. But I can assure you that the procedure will take at least three days to finish.