With just three days separating Nigerians and the 2019 general elections, concerns are mounting over the efficiency of the system, especially the use of card readers. The main opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has sued the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the use of card readers for the 2019 general election; asking a federal high court in Abuja to restrict INEC from postponing elections in any polling unit as a result of malfunctioning card readers.
The electoral umpire had earlier announced that should there be any case of card reader malfunctions, voting will be suspended till a new card reader arrives or postponed till the next day if a replacement is not available by 2 pm. In the suit, the PDP argued that INEC’s insistence in its regulations and guidelines for the conduct of the elections; that a voter’s identity must be confirmed by the card reader is inconsistent with provisions of the electoral act.
According to the PDP, past experiences of where card readers failed to accredit voters accordingly, shows the system is not 100% reliable, let alone transparent. Indeed, in some of the previous elections across the country, card readers malfunctioned in many polling units, a situation that triggered undue delay in the accreditation process. The hitches ranged from rejection of permanent voters card (PVC), by the card readers, inability to capture the biometrics from finger tips, irregular capturing and fast battery drainage, among others.
The PDP recalled that during the 2015 elections, three voter card readers failed to read former President Goodluck Jonathan’s biometrics and accredit him for voting at the polling center in his home town, Otueke, Bayelsa State. President Jonathan arrived Polling Unit 13 at 9:20 am on election day, but could not be accredited over an hour later as three different card readers failed to capture his biometrics. The same scenario also played out at the Ekiti Governorship election of 2018, where the PDP flagbearer, Prof. Olusola Eleka, and wife’s voters’ card were not read by the card reader. The card reader also failed to read the PVC of the wife of the then APC governorship candidate’s wife in Ekiti, Erelu Bisi.
Card readers also malfunctioned in some areas during the Osun governorship election. Though, later rectified, the device malfunctioned in Ife and Oriade, among other places and that slowed the process. Last November in Kebbi, no less than 56 out of 3,882 card readers failed to capture the people’s data in the state when they were tested. These are some of the failures that had played out since card readers were introduced in 2015.
Experts have told Huhuonline.com that the card reader is essentially an electronic device manufactured to render data and information verification, authentication, accreditation. Olusola Teniola, president of the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), explained that technology offers INEC the ability to maximize its capacity and responsiveness to the electorate and the eventual results of an election. Teniola noted that the card reader should be the only form of technology that should verify an electorate, adding: “introducing other methods of verification leads to manipulation and temptation to tamper with the process. It is the hope that we shall be able to witness end-to-end machine-to-machine processing of electorate votes without human beings being involved in the system.”
On what could hinder its seamless process, the ATCON president said “If the INEC officials are not fully trained and comfortable using and adopting technology then this will bring in cases and situations where human intervention may slow down the election process.” According to him, it is very evident that the technology for e-elections and instant collation of results from different regions is available, which Nigeria needs to adopt, to prevent malpractices surrounding polling booths.
In terms of guaranteeing the success of the election, the Director-General, Delta State Innovation Hub (DSHuB), Chris Uwaje, said the probability of the smoothness of a digital electioneering process depends on many factors based on the model adopted in many countries. Uwaje noted that the card reader is just about 15 per cent to 18 per cent of the process. “For example, since the INEC upgraded card reader is a smart digital device, it means that it requires abundant broadband transmission bandwidth interface to deliver effectively, but as per the available records, our National Broadband penetration is about 30 per cent, which means that the whole country is not covered and other means would be required to argument the deficit.”
INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has assured of improved functionality of the card readers.
Speaking in Abuja, Prof. Yakubu noted that the problem with card readers witnessed in past elections were not technical but with the training of the ad hoc staff. He assured Nigerians that steps had been taken to check the problems with handling of the machine. “We have taken steps to improve the process of the smart card readers and we will continue to do so. The commission assures Nigerians that the smart card reader has become an integral part of the electoral process and will be deployed for the conduct of the 2019 general elections,” he said.
INEC has also sought to allay the concerns of the electorate amid allegations that INEC has secretly changed the pattern of fingers allowed for thumb printing on the ballot papers, ahead of the elections.
INEC explained that voters can use any finger to cast their votes in the forthcoming general elections. The commission made the clarification on its official twitter page on Wednesday, saying the ballot paper was not finger sensitive, but advised the electorate not to allow the indelible ink on their fingers cross into another box. “A voter can use any finger to vote but should ensure that his or her mark is clear and placed inside the box of the political party of his or her choice and does not stray into another box.”
INEC Card Reader
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