By John Ikani
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Has unveiled an online portal for the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR).
Speaking to newsmen in Abuja at the launch of the online portal for the CVR,
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said the registration portal would go live in the early hours of June 28.
According to him, the online registration was a public service and free of charge.
“There is no INEC-approved cybercafe, no online registration centre and no scratch card to be purchased for the exercise.
“All you need is a device, including your mobile phone, that can connect to the internet. Citizens can complete the online pre-registration anywhere and at anytime they choose.
“Just follow the simple but detailed step-by-step procedure on the portal and contact the INEC Help Desk where necessary. The details are on our website,” he said.
Speaking on June 28 date set for the resumption of registration exercise, Yakubu said INEC had acquired all the required equipment, updated its registration software and pencilled down 5,346 staff for deployment to the 2,673 registration centres nationwide.
“Among the equipment for the exercise is a new registration machine called the INEC Voter Enrolment Device (IVED).
“This device is built around the concept of a Tablet computer and will replace the lap-top based old Direct Data Capture Machine (DDCM).
“I am glad to say that our engineers designed the IVED in-house before it was fabricated abroad.
“It is more mobile and efficient than the DDCM and could also be deployed to other activities, particularly the accreditation of voters during elections,” he said.
The INEC boss said in addition to the online registration portal, there will be some 2,673 centres where citizens can register physically nationwide.
He went on to note that the exercise will be carried out continuously over a period of at least one year thereby providing enough time for INEC to reach all the nooks and crannies of the country.
