Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, says conducting elections in Nigeria was similar to holding one in the entire West Africa region.

“The size of our voter population and elective institutions make elections in Nigeria a huge undertaking. This fact is better appreciated within our regional context.

“There are 15 countries in West Africa today, including Nigeria,” Mr Yakubu said at a strategic interactive meeting with online publishers organised by the electoral commission.

Held in Lagos on Wednesday, the event was in collaboration with the Institute for Media and Society and the International Press Centre.

Speaking further, Mr Yakubu said with Nigeria’s current voter population of over 84 million, Africa’s largest economy has about 11 million more registered voters than the other 14 West African countries put together, “which have 73.6 million registered voters.”

Conducting a general election in Nigeria is like holding one in West Africa. “Elections are held all-year round between one general election and another with no respite,” he said.

According to him, Nigeria’s size and population make it one of the biggest democracies in the world and the largest presidential democracy after the United States of America.

Mr Yakubu, who called for stronger INEC/Media partnership to foster a strong democratic Nigeria, said that the task of deepening Nigeria’s democracy was a collective duty.

Regarding the recently held Anambra governorship election, especially the concerns surrounding the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, Mr Yakubu said all hitches noticed in the deployment of the BVAS have been addressed ahead of future elections.

(NAN)