We will obey court order on voter registration, but… – INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it will obey the interim order of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR).

INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, said this on Monday while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

However, Okoye said INEC would return to the court on the adjourned date to convince the court on why the exercise should be discontinued for now.

Justice Mobolaji Olajuwon of the Federal High Court had stopped INEC from going ahead with its decision to end the CVR exercise on June 30, as scheduled.

The judge gave the ruling while granting an order of interim injunction following the hearing of an argument on motion ex parte filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).

The suit was adjourned till June 29 for the hearing of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.

READ: Court forbids INEC from ending voter registration June 30

“The commission is a constitutional body, and we are under a constitutional obligation to give effect to judgments and orders of properly constituted courts of law, and we are going to give effect to the order made by the Federal High Court.

“The court has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to come back on the 29th day of June and explain its position; we are going to go back to the court on that 29th day of June to explain our position and then allow the rest of the issues to be determined by the court,” Okoye said.

According to the INEC National Commissioner, the CVR exercise has been ongoing for about a year as the online pre-registration and physical registration began in June and July 2021, respectively.

He lamented that there were instances where the registration officers registered just an individual for the whole day, stressing that the cost implications cannot be overlooked.

Okoye reiterated that the exercise was meant for only those who have not registered before and who have attained the age of 18 and above.