S'East crawls behind as S'West leads in INEC voter registration * Osun alone records 393,269, entire S'East 1998 voters only

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S’East crawls behind as S’West leads in INEC voter registration

* Osun alone records 393,269, entire S’East 1998 voters only

By Steve Oko

The South East geo-political zone is crawling a distant behind in the Continuous Registration of Voters (CRV), that started on August 18 ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general polls.

According to statistics released on Monday, August 25 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the entire South East recorded only a paltry 1,998 persons while Osun State in South West topped the table with an impressive 393,269 (28.51%) individuals.

Wawa News Global reports that Lagos State, also in South West came second with 222,205 representing 16.11%.

From the rear end, Ebonyi State recorded the least number of persons with only 261 representing 0.02%, followed by Imo with 481 (0. 03 %).

Enugu came third with 484 (0.04%);Abia had 772 (0. 06%); while Anambra State was not yet captured in the figures so far released.

Other states include:Ogun with 132,823 (9.63 %) and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT with 107,682 (7. 81 %).

A statement by the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, said a total of 1,379,342 Nigerians registered nationwide in just one week.

The statement reads: “The nationwide online pre-registration of voters commenced on Monday, 18th August 2025. As of yesterday, Sunday 24th August 2025, a total of 1,379,342 Nigerians registered nationwide in just one week.

“As promised, the Commission is glad to publish the first weekly update of the exercise by providing details of the registration by State, gender, age, occupation and disability.

“The breakdown of the online pre-registrations shows that 661,846 (47.96%) are male and 717,856 (52.04%) are female. Young people between the ages of 18 and 34 constitute the majority of the registrants, with 860,286 (62.37%).

“In terms of occupation, 374,534 (27.15%) are students, while the figure for persons with disability is 27,089 (1.96%). Full details have been published on our website and other official platforms for public information.

“Meanwhile, physical registration kicks off today in our 811 State and Local Government offices nationwide. This will afford those who prefer the in-person option to register at the centres and those who choose the online pre-registration method to complete their registration.

“Once again, the Commission appeals to the public that the ongoing voter registration is only open to Nigerian citizens who are at least 18 years old and who are not registered voters. Double or multiple registration is a violation of the law. However, inter-State/FCT and intra-State/FCT transfer of voters, as well as the replacement of lost or damaged voters’ cards, are allowed during the CVR.

“The exercise will continue for one year until 30th August 2026. However, the Commission urged all intending registrants not to wait until the deadline approaches when, from experience, the registration centres are inundated by eleventh hour registrants amidst appeals for extension of time”.

However, the list published does not include Anambra state, where the Continuous Voter Registration was conducted recently in preparation for the November governorship election in the state.

With the INEC statistics, it is now obvious that South East’s level of political apathy and lack of interest in the CRV, will constitute a major hurdle to the Nigerian President of Igbo extraction project.

In 2023 presidential poll, Peter Obi swept the South East zone but with less than 2 million total votes while Kano State alone, had over 3 million votes.

The worrisome situation calls for quick action by political leaders and other stakeholders in South East who seem less concerned.

There has to be an aggressive sensitisation and awareness campaign to mobilise Ndigbo especially those in South East to go get their PVCs irrespective of their excuses.

Analysts attribute South Easterners’ disenchantment and lack of interest in the exercise to the manifest manipulation of the 2023 polls against Obi who was believed to have swept the presidential poll in many states including Lagos and Abuja.

Meanwhile, supporters of Obi otherwise known as the Obidents, have launched nation-wide aggressive sensitisation of voters for the ongoing registration.

The campaign known as Get Organised, Make Election Rigging Difficult, GOMERD, is aimed at mobilising millions of Nigerians to get their PVCs as a weapon to effect the desired change in 2027.

South East Governors, National Assembly members, state lawmakers, Local Government Chairmen and all political appointees irrespective of their political leanings, must rise to the occasion and ensure that all eligible voters in their constituencies are mobilised to get registered before the end of exercise in August 2026.

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Steve Oko, Publisher/C.E.O, WaWa News Global. For more information on advert placement and news coverage, contact us on: 08038725600, or via email stevemanofgod2000@yahoo.com; wawanewsglobal@gmail.com Always read WaWa News Global - Your most dependable online news platform for the latest breaking news in Nigeria.