The Ikeja Local Government Area of Lagos State has warned eligible residents in the area of loosing their voting rights in upcoming polls if they failed to participate in INEC”s ongoing Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) exercise.
Mr Abisola Omisore, Vice-Chairman, Ikeja local government area said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday.
NAN reports that INEC has continued to canvass for Nigerians to take advantage of the exercise to register, to enable them participate actively in elections.
The vice chairman appealed to youths, artisans, traders and even civil servants in the area to update their voters cards if there is need to.
According to him, the INEC office and designated registration areas across the wards of the council are manned by qualified INEC officials who conduct the exercise freely.
The chairman urged all eligible youths not to waste the opportunity of the ongoing registration or wait till last minute.
“We advise those who have attained the age of 18 to ensure they register to enable them exercise their franchise during elections.
“We also urge eligible residents, who may have relocated to the council to update their records.
“Those who have lost or damaged theirs can equally request for a new one,” he said.
Omisore noted that the ability to vote out bad leaders or non performing ones and even vote in good politicians could only be possible with a voters card.
According to him, residents cannot actively participate in politics or decide who their representatives can be without a voting power.
The chairman, however, cautioned against double registration to avoid disqualification.
He added that those who had registered should not attempt to re-register, appealing to political parties to also discourage multiple registrations.
He advised INEC to ensure a hitch-free exercise, promising that the council will assist, where necessary, to ensure a smooth exercise.
Omisore said the registration centres would be monitored by the council to ensure a seamless exercise.
NAN reports that the online CVR exercise which began on Aug. 18, will run till Dec. 10, while the Physical/On-site registration at any of the registration centres began on Aug. 25. (NAN)
