By Favour Goodness
The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola said if sit-at-bome holds in Anambra state on Nov 6, the prisoners may be used to vote, because Nigerian constitution gives them the right.
Aregbesola said, “This is because the enabling laws do not remove the right to vote from inmates because they are inmates.”
Represented by his technical adviser on Corrections, Michael Anugwa, the minister disclosed this while speaking on the sidelines of the planning meeting of the Pollrite 23 project in Abuja .
“There are certain freedoms that they are denied but voting is not one of them. So, the inmates’ right to vote must be encouraged by all and sundry, especially now our government desire more people to participate in the incoming Anambra election.”
The agency had earlier reported that the Pollrite 23 project is aimed at facilitating civic engagement among communities with low voters’ turnout, including inmates in Nigeria.
Carmelites Prisoners’ Interest Organisations (CAPIO) organised the meeting with relevant stakeholders to find a way to achieve the project.