Low Voter Turnout: INEC to Destroy 65 Percent of Printed Ballots

Pat Stevens/

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has revealed that it would destroy about 65 percent of the ballot papers it procured for 50 million voters it expected to take part in the 2019 elections.

This revelation was made by an INEC National Commissioner, Dr. Mustapha Lecky, who was a guest on a Channels TV programme, The Verdict, monitored this evening.

Lecky said the development was occasioned by the fact that only about 35 percent of registered voters turned up to cast their ballots, while the law mandates the Commission to print ballots that equal the number of registered voters.

He decried the resultant huge quantity of unused ballots, while advocating drastic reforms to the nation’s electoral process to eliminate wastage and also encourage more people to participate in the process.

Lecky said it was high time the nation introduced technological innovations to the electoral process in order to encourage greater level of youth participation.

He further stated that “the task of reforming the electoral process and engedering greater citizens’ participation is not a task for INEC alone. It requires the involvement of all Nigerians. It is a process we must all show interest in. INEC is currently doing far too many things”.

According to Lecky, low voter turnout also reduces the legitimacy of the elections.

“One begins to wonder how legitimate the mandate is when only about 15 to 20 percent of voters determine the winners. What happens to the rest of the citizens,” he observed.