THAT the Independennt National Electoral Commmission (INEC) is indispensable to Nigeria’s democracy is not in doubt. Democracy thrives through free and fair elections, a core mandate of the electoral commmission.
However, the point cannot be disputed that voter education goes a long way to entrench democracy in any modern state. In this regard, INEC needs to ensure that voter education takes place all the time, even when there are no elections.
Since 1999, INEC has only addressed voter education during elections. This is not good enough. For instance, the number of votes lost to wrong use of the ballot box and thumbprinting is signifant.
INEC needs to invest heavily in lectures, movies, among others, that propagate voter education. This will help in consolidating democracy in the country.
- Thomas Ayobami
Lagos