The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has rejected claims that Nigerians have lost faith in the country’s electoral process, describing the allegations as baseless and without evidence.
In recent weeks, civil society and religious groups have accused the commission of failing to inspire confidence in the system.
Responding on Sunday, September 28, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, told reporters that the data from the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) proved otherwise.
“The notion that Nigerians have lost confidence in the electoral process is more of a myth than a reality, as those who proclaim it lack convincing evidence to support it,” Oyekanmi said.
He explained that the high turnout in the registration exercise, particularly among young Nigerians, showed strong public trust.
“On the contrary, the high level of participation by Nigerians, especially the youths, in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration, which began on August 18 this year with online pre-registration, shows that citizens still have confidence in the process,” he added.
The CVR portal went live on August 18, 2025, and within seven hours, 69,376 Nigerians had pre-registered. By August 24, one week later, 1,379,342 had completed pre-registration.
“By September 1, that figure rose to 2,532,062, and by September 21, five weeks into the exercise, 5,385,060 had uploaded their details.
In-person registration began on August 25. Within the first month, 764,695 people completed the process, combining both online and physical registrations.
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“There is no African country with these types of voter registration figures within one month,” Oyekanmi stated.
He reminded registrants that completion of registration must be done physically, in line with the Electoral Act 2022.
“All those who pre-registered online must complete their registration by physically appearing at their preferred designated centre to have their biometrics and other details captured, in compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, specifically Sections 9(7) and 10(2),” he explained.
Reflecting on the 2023 general elections, Oyekanmi said the outcome showed significant progress.
“The 2023 general election, more than any other election, demonstrates this fact. The election produced the most diverse National Assembly since the restoration of democracy in 1999,” he said.
He noted that seven political parties won Senate seats and eight gained seats in the House of Representatives, while nine secured representation across State Assemblies. At the gubernatorial level, APC won 16 states, PDP 10, LP one, and NNPP one.
Oyekanmi further argued that recent bye-elections also proved Nigerians’ continued faith in the system.
“Ironically, some of the most ardent critics of INEC are also in the forefront of calling for electoral reform to transfer Local Government elections to the same commission. Surely, they cannot continue to walk on both sides of the road,” he said.