Within 72 hours of resuming the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise in Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) received 135,155 online applications.
On Monday, June 28, the commission opened its dedicated portal for eligible Nigerians nationwide to commence their voter registration, ahead of the 2023 national elections.
By 7 am on Thursday, July 1, data obtained from INEC’s Instagram page shows that more than 150,000 accounts had been created with over 135,000 applications submitted.
Many of the applicants have taken to social media to commend the commission for what they describe as a seamless process.
But the exercise has not been exactly smooth for some. Many complaints have sprung up about ongoing online pre-registration; however, a lot of Nigerians don’t know where to channel their inquiries.
INEC inquiry channels
Most of the Permanent Voters’ Card (PVC)-related issues can be addressed through the new INEC portal – including change of voting location, replacement of damaged cards, etc.
To register complaints outside of PVCs, INEC has a dedicated Citizens Contact Centre (ICCC). The ICCC is a situation room that gives people daily access to the agency to make inquiries or exchange information.
According to the agency, the public can get real-time responses to incident reports, complaints, and queries about any issue with the electoral process at the Centre.
The ICCC is available for use by the public during the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR). Hotlines for the Centre can be found here.
The Centre can also be accessed through INEC’s website, Facebook page, verified Twitter handle, Instagram page, email address, and the official myINEC Mobile App available on Google Play Store. INEC also has an emergency number (0700-2255-4632) apart from the dedicated ICCC hotlines, through which complaints can be made.
TechCabal tried to reach the commission through all of the channels in an attempt to assess how responsive they are to inquiries. Messages were sent to INEC via its Facebook, Instagram, and email on Friday but the agency is yet to respond to any at the time of publication.
In addition, the main INEC emergency hotline was switched off and most of the ICCC hotlines were also not reachable. Only two (09025038466 & 07086945927) of the 12 numbers listed were available. And as for social media, the only channel that appears to be effectively responsive is the commission’s Twitter handle (@inecnigeria).
Meanwhile, the Commission has said it will continue to provide Nigerians with updates on the activities on the portal and the online registration status.
The online pre-registration will last until July 19, from when physical voter registration would commence at INEC State and Local Government Offices nationwide.
Did you enjoy reading this article? Please fill out this survey. We need your feedback to help us introduce content you will find useful.
