Proposed legislation aims to grant voting rights to prisoners in Nigeria’s elections

The National Assembly has received a bill that aims to amend the Electoral Act, 2022, in order to grant voting rights to inmates in Nigerian prisons.

The bill, titled ‘Bill for An Act to amend the Electoral Act to provide for the right to vote of persons detained or incarcerated in custodial institutions and other places of detention; and related matters’, was obtained by Obasanjonews.com.

It is also known as the ‘Electoral (Custodial Inmates) Bill, 2024’ and is sponsored by the Carmelite Prisoners Interest Organization (CAPIO), a not-for-profit organization.

The bill was drafted by the Association of Legislative Drafting and Advocacy Practitioners (ALDRAP), led by Dr Tonye Clinton Jaja.

In order to grant voting rights to inmates in Nigerian prisons, the bill proposes amendments to several sections of the current Electoral Act, 2022, including sections 9, 12, 13, 40, and 152.

One of the key amendments suggested by the bill is the addition of a new subsection (3) to Section 40 of the Electoral Act, 2022.

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This subsection states that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should establish polling units in or near Custodial Centres and detention facilities, in consultation with the head of such institutions or facilities.

Additionally, the bill seeks to establish voters’ registration centers at prisons across the country.

This would be achieved by inserting a new subsection (8) to Section 9 of the Electoral Act, 2022, which requires the Commission to designate registration centers in or near Custodial Centres and detention facilities, in consultation with the head of such institutions or facilities.

The proposed bill aims to address the issue of inmates who were registered to vote in a different area before their incarceration.

It seeks to grant these inmates the right to transfer their polling units to the location of the prison where they are currently held.

This amendment would involve deleting the existing subsection (1) of Section 13 of the Electoral Act and replacing it with a new subsection.

The new subsection would allow individuals who are residents of a constituency other than the one they were registered in, including those in detention facilities or custodial centers, to apply to the Resident Electoral Commissioner of the State where they currently reside.

Their names would then be entered on the Transferred Voters List for that constituency.

The sponsors of the bill, the Carmelite Prisoners Interest Organization (CAPIO), emphasize the importance of ensuring that all eligible voters, whether free or in detention, have the right to participate in the government of their country.

They argue that these rights are protected by various global, regional, and national legal frameworks and instruments.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, for example, states that everyone has the right to take part in the government of their country directly or through chosen representatives.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights also highlights the right to vote without discrimination.

At the African regional level, the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights guarantees the right to participate freely in government, while the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance emphasizes the right of citizens to participate in the electoral process freely and fairly.

Furthermore, the Nigerian Constitution guarantees the right of citizens to vote in elections in the country.