The House of Representatives, Tuesday, moved to probe issuance of voters’ cards to under-aged voters by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Consequently, the House resolved to set up an ad-hoc committee to probe deeply into the allegation levelled against the apex electoral body.
The development was sequel to a motion promoted by Johnbull Shekerau, PDP, Plateau State.
But immediately after the debate, Uzoma Nkem-Abonta, PDP, Abia moved for amendment of Shekarau’s prayer from mandating the Committee on Electoral and Political Parties to probe the matter to rather set up an independent committee.
His proposed amendment to set up an ad-hoc committee was put to voice vote by the presiding officer, Speaker, Yakubu Dogara and was accepted.
While leading the debate, Shekarau told his colleagues that “the Director of Publicity and Voters’ Education at INEC, Oluwole Uzzi while responding to questions on the matter said the under-aged voters were registered because the lives of the officers were being threatened.”
He explained that the “Incident caused serious embarrassment to the nation and amounts to a threat to our growing democracy and a danger to the security of lives of officials posted to handle sensitive national issues such as registration of eligible voters.”
At this point, the speaker called for a debate on the issue.
Emmanuel Egwu, PDP, Kogi described the situation as “Electoral corruption,” he argued that it was not just financial corruption that spells doom for a nation, but moral decay.
Also supporting the call for investigation, Henry Archibong (PDP, Akwa Ibom) said that justification by INEC holds no water, as none of the officers of the commission threatened came out before the emergence of the viral video showing underage voting in Kano State.
Most of the law makers who contributed to the debate condemned the act and demanded for a decisive action from the lawmakers in the over interest of the nation.
When the motion was put into voice vote by Yakubu Dogara, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, who presided over the plenary, it was unanimously supported.
