New Voter Register for 2011 Nigerian elections

09 Aug, 2010

Nigeria's Independent Electoral Commission has announced that, subject to government funding, a new voters' register could be established in time for the next general elections in January 2011.

Central to the success of this plan is adequate funding but the senate is reluctant to issue the estimated N74 billion needed to make the project a reality. Deputy senate president Ike Ekweremadu has urged the electoral commission to reduce this figure, arguing that it did not make economic sense to spend that amount of money on the scheme while so many sectors of Nigerian society faced poverty.

However, opponents of the government have stated that a new voters' register is necessary in order to conduct a fair and credible election.