C A R D R EA D ER
AND THE
E L E CT OR A L A CT – A NY C O N FL I C T ?
The need to instill sanity in electoral activities and outcome in
Nigeria
has
made
it
necessary
for
us
to
move
from
the
antediluvian method of voting where crude force and metal
violence reign supreme. The unprecedented clamour for change
is
not
devoid
of
historical
necessity
condemnation that trailed the
as
the
volume
of
2007 general elections only
showed that Nigeria as a nation could not be counted among
civilized nations democratically.
It was based on the above that Independent National Electoral
Commission is required to do everything humanly possible to
ensure that we attain electoral transparency that can instill
discipline and statesmanship in politicians as for genuine losers
to accept defeat a nd the authentic winners to maintain sobriety
in victory. I believe, it is in the light of the above that the
Independent
National
Electoral
Commission
(INEC)
has
introduced the use of Card Reader to determine the genuineness
of the identity of voters duri ng accreditation in order to
eliminate voting by proxy and associated malpractices.
Unfortunately, while agents of change have been embracing
technological advancements recognized and permitted by law to
make
electoral
justice
and
sanity
prevail,
we
have
been
inundated by cacophonous calls from various quarters of those
who want to maintain the status quo in which electoral violence
and brazen rigging are permitted. They have argued that the use
of card reader is not allowed by virtue of Section 52 of the
Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended).
Section 52 of the Electoral Act, 2010 as amended provides thus:
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“(1)
Voting at an election under this Act shall be by
open secret ballot.
(2)
The use of electronic voting machine for the
time being is prohibited.
(3)
A voter on receiving a ballot paper shall mark
it in the manner prescribed by the Commission.
(4)
All ballots at an election under this Act at any
polling station shall be deposited in the ballot box in
the open view of the public.”
The implication of the ab ove in line with subsection 2 is that
electronic voting is forbidden in Nigeria. The next questions
therefore are: what is electronic voting or electronic voting
machine?
What is a card reader and i s electronic voting
machine the same thing as a card read er?
A card reader has been defined as “a data input device that
reads data from a card -shaped storage medium…. Modern card
readers are electronic devices that can read plastic cards with
either a barcode, magnetic strip, computer chip or another
storage medium.”
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Card_reader
On the other hand , “electronic voting or e -voting refers to both
the electronic means of casting a vote and the electronic means
of tabulating votes…. This can include punch card systems,
optical scan voting systems, direct -recording electronic (DRE)
and
Internet
voting. ”
See
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Electroni c_voting.
Electronic voting machine can then be described as a device or
machine by which electronic vote can be cast without the use of
ballot papers.
Examples of such
machines are
punch card
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systems, optical scan voting systems, direct -recording electro nic
(DRE) and Internet voting.
From the foregoing, it is apparent that the electronic voting
machine and the card reader are two different devices that are
not necessarily deployed together for all purposes. The further
import of which is that electronic voting or the use of electronic
voting machine for voting is not the same thing as using the card
reader to determine the identity of voters in the process of
accreditation
of
voters.
What
Section
52(2)
prohibits
as
indicated earlier is the use of electron ic voting machine but
not the use of Card Reader for accreditation of voters and that
is where it stops. Thus, for all intent and purposes, a card
reader simply verifies and authenticates the identity of the
voter.
To further buttress the distinction hi ghlighted above, a Card
Reader is not an electronic voting machine but is a machine to
be used for accreditation of voters only before the actual
voting. A distinguishing factor is that in electronic voting, ballot
papers are not used and cannot be used, b ut the forthcoming
2015 general elections are ballot paper -based. The use of card
reader for the purpose of accreditation hastens the process as
accreditation of a voter does not take more than a few seconds.
The use of the Card Reader is based on the use of the Permanent
Voters Card of which fake and purloined PVCs can be easily
detected, and this will assist in preventing certain electoral
malpractices and assist in ensuring free, fair, credible and
peaceful elections across the country .
It should be noted that none of the above -mentioned methods or
technologies by which e -voting can be done is being deployed by
INEC
for
the
purpose
of
voting
during
the
2015
general
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elections. The implication therefore is that INEC is not engaging
in electronic voting which is what Section 52(2) of the Electoral
Act, 2010 actually prohibits. The law is that what is not
prohibited is permitted. According to the Court of Appeal in Ojo
Bolarinwa Theophilous v. Federal Republic of Nigeria (2012)
LPELR-9846 (CA),
“The basic canon of interpretation or construction of
statutory provisions remains that what is not expressly
prohibited by a statute is impliedly permitted.
Thus,
since
the
use
of
card
reader
for
the
purpose
of
accreditation of voters is not prohibited by the Elec toral Act,
same is definitely permitted.
Furthermore, Accreditation of voters is not the same thing as
casting
of
presenting
vote
as
himself
a
to
person
vote.
may
The
be
accredited
difference
without
between
accreditation and voting is underscored by Sect ion 49(1) and (2)
of the Electoral Act, 2010 as follows:
49 (1) A person intending to vote with his voter’s card,
shall present himself to a Presiding Officer at the
polling unit in the constituency in which his name
is registered with his voter’s card. (2) The Presiding Officer shall, on being satisfied that
the name of the person is on the register of v oters,
issue him a ballot paper and indicate on the
Register that the person has voted.
The meaning of the above is that the process of presenting
oneself to a presiding officer with one’s voter’s card and the
process of checking of a voter’s name on the voter’s register
including the ticking of the name constitute what is referred to
as accreditation. In order to separate accreditation from actual
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voting, the INEC Guidelines and Manual for Election Officials
provides that accreditation shall hold between 8 .00 am and 1pm
or such time as the last person on the que ue finishes while ,
voting
commences
at
1.30pm
or
so
soon
thereafter
when
accreditation must have been completed till the last person
concludes.
It is hoped that the elements stuck to the past would liberate
themselves
from
the
twigs
of
yesteryears
and
allow
this
commendable step aimed at fixing o ur electoral troubles.
By
Dr. Muiz Adeyemi Banire
All Progressives Congress (APC) National Legal Adviser
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