Principal stakeholders of the two major political parties in the country have called for aggressive mobilisation, sensitisation and education of citizens to enable eligible voting age Nigerians obtain their permanent voter cards as a major step to help reduce voter apathy in the 2023 general elections.
The stakeholders, who spoke in separate interviews with Blueprint in Abuja, blamed voter apathy in past elections in the country on the reluctance of eligible voters to register and obtain PVCs early enough for elections.
Alhaji Hamidu Sarki Gaube, Kuje area council candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the February 12, 2022 chairmanship election, described the level of political awareness among rural communities as very low and called for increased education of the people on the rules of democracy.
While expressing dissatisfaction over the level of voter education in the country, Hamidu stated that although the nation’s democracy has started stabilising, demand for monetisation of support does not augur well for healthy democracy and shows public reluctance to willingly participate in civic responsibilities.
On his part, the FCT Coordinator Atiku Abubakar Campaign Organisation, Dr. Danladi Etsu Zhin, also called for aggressive sensitisation of the electorate to enable the nation harvest maximum votes during the general elections.
Danladi commended politicians for the progress made so far in the democratic space but called for aggressive mobilisation of voters, pointing out that many youth do not have voter cards, leading to extension of the deadline for registration.
Zhin, who was the former Kuje area council chairman, also called on the National Orientation Agency (NOA) to move into the field, especially remote villages, to sensitise the people on the general elections.
“Sometimes I wonder what the NOA officials are doing, sitting in their offices and receiving tax payers’ money without doing what they are supposed to do; such as mobilising and sensitising voters to come out and vote during elections,” he said.
