By Jennifer Y Omiloli
For some reason, voter turnout in Nigeria has been dropping since 2003.
For those who have their PVC, here is a guide to the voting process so that you are prepared to participate fully and so that you can report any irregularities that happen at your polling unit.
Some highlights to know:
*Polls open at 8:00 am to begin accreditation.
*In order to vote you must be in line before accreditation closes at 1:00 pm, but be early just in case.
*After accreditation INEC advises you to stay within the polling area to wait for voting to begin; if you leave, you must return before voters queue for voting, which should be at 1:30 pm (but come back early to make sure).
*Despite reports to the contrary, INEC confirmed that you can use any finger to mark your ballot but the mark must not stray into another box.
Below is the step by step comprehensive overview of the voting process.
STEP 1
Polling units shall be open for accreditation and voting at 8:00 am. For the accreditation process your Permanent Voters Card, will be read using a card reader.
STEP: 2
You will then be asked to authenticate your identity and asked to place your fingers on a machine which will authenticate your fingerprint. Once fingerprint is authenticated, your name will be looked up on the register of voters
STEP: 3
After accreditation, the Presiding Officer shall offer you a pre-folded ballot paper, (stamped, signed and endorsed with date) and you will be given ink to stain your voting finger with.
STEP: 4
You will be asked to remove your cellphone or cameras before proceeding to the voting cubicle
STEP: 5
You will be showed the voting cubicle in which to mark the candidate of your choice on the provided ballot paper
STEP: 6
After marking the ballot paper, you will deposit the ballot paper in the appropriate ballot box , the box shall be placed not more than two meters away from the voting cubicle
STEP: 7
After casting your ballot, you are free to remain within the vicinity of the Polling Unit to witness the sorting and counting of votes and the announcement of results.
STEP: 8
Accreditation and voting will continue as long as there are people left to vote.
Use these dos and don’ts tips to make the experience comfortable and avoid problems.
You can report both poll results and problems on election day. You can use the mobile crowd source election monitoring app made by civil society organization, Zabe or report to INEC on its election hotline 0700-CALL-INEC (0700-2255-4632) or by downloading the INEC app on non-iPhone mobiles.
Remember, these are your elections –make it count!
