The Independent National Electoral Commission has uncovered the names of deceased Nigerians on the national voters’ register, raising fresh concerns about the integrity of the country’s electoral database.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja during the commission’s first quarterly meeting with civil society organisations, saying the discovery followed an internal audit of the register.
Amupitan said the presence of dead persons’ names on the roll undermined public confidence in elections and made a comprehensive cleanup unavoidable.
“Our review shows that some people who passed on long ago are still listed as eligible voters. This is unacceptable and raises serious concerns about the quality of the register we currently deploy for elections,” he said.
He announced that INEC would soon embark on a nationwide verification exercise aimed at removing ineligible entries and ensuring that only qualified, living citizens are captured in the database.
The INEC boss cited the November off-cycle governorship election in Anambra State as a troubling example. Although more than 2.9 million voters were registered, only about 600,000 turned out to vote, representing roughly 20 per cent participation.
“After the election, we reviewed the register and found that even well-known politicians who are no longer alive were still listed. This weakens trust in the system and reinforces the need for urgent cleanup,” Amupitan said.
He added that preparations for the 2027 general elections were ongoing, noting that a timetable had already been drawn up but its release was being delayed by proposed amendments to the Electoral Act that could affect the electoral schedule.
Amupitan assured stakeholders that INEC remained committed to delivering credible elections, stressing that a credible voters’ register was the foundation of any transparent and trustworthy electoral process.
Civil society representatives at the meeting urged the commission to work closely with relevant agencies, including the National Population Commission and health authorities, to improve data sharing and prevent the recurrence of ghost voters on the roll.
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