The National Assembly’s upper chamber has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enable legally registered and qualified prisoners to vote in general elections in the country.
The Senate requested that the electoral umpire evaluate the status of inmates who are constitutionally and legally eligible to register as voters and vote in elections.
The Red Chamber also asked INEC and other relevant institutions to amend the voter register to include the prison population for election purposes.
The Senate also requested that the commission work with the Nigeria Correctional Service to establish voting centres in detention centres across the country.
Senator Patrick Abba Moro (Benue South) introduced a motion stating that citizenship, as defined by the Nigerian Constitution 1999 (as amended), comes with several stated rights and civic responsibilities, one of which is the ability to vote in general elections.
Being a prison inmate, according to Section 24 of the Electoral Act of 2022, is not an obstacle to a prison inmate’s registration and voting rights.
He went on to say that denying inmates access to the electoral process violates their rights as citizens of Nigeria, as defined by Section 25 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), which confirms the definition of who is a citizen, and Section 12(1) of the Electoral Act, 2022 (as amended), which spells out who is eligible to vote.
