A bill proposing mandatory voting in elections for eligible voters in Nigeria has scaled second reading at the House of Representatives.
The bill which is sponsored by the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas and and Daniel Ago, passed the second reading stage after an extensive debate on Thursday.
Ago who led the debate during plenary said the bill aimed to encourage citizens’ participation in the electoral process.
According to the lawmaker, voter apathy during elections would be addressed if the bill scales legislative scrutiny.
Despite passing the second reading, a Peoples Democratic Party lawmaker from Akwa Ibom State, Mark Esset, said enacting a law to make voting compulsory is not enough to sanitise the electoral system.
“Let us not put something on nothing. If citizens have lost confidence in the electoral system, there is a lot of work to be done.
“Many Nigerians do not vote during elections because they believe that their votes will not count. If we must make a law to make voting compulsory, we must also make another one to make their votes count,” he said.
