To ensure that people displaced by insecurity are not excluded from the electoral process, a disability rights organisation, TAF Africa, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have taken a voter registration campaign to an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in Benue State.
The organisation said the event, held at the Mega IDP Camp in Agan, Makurdi, was part of its campaign to expand electoral participation among people living with disability and other vulnerable groups.
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TAF Africa’s senior monitoring and evaluation officer, Terfa Tyokase, said displacement should not deprive citizens of their constitutional right to vote.
“Displacement does not mean their right to vote is denied. Democracy is inclusive only when every voice is heard. Everybody, irrespective of their condition or status, whether internally displaced or living with disability, should be given the opportunity to vote,” Mr Tyokase said.
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He said the exercise was intended not only to register displaced persons but also to draw public attention to gaps in voter access across Benue’s camps.
According to him, the Mega Camp exercise was only a starting point.
“We have over 50 camps in Benue, even though only about 10 are officially recognised. This is a model we want the media to amplify so that every displaced person knows it is their right to register and vote,” he said.
Mr Tyokase urged displaced residents to take advantage of the CVR before it closes on 10 July, adding that TAF Africa was working with INEC to bring registration closer to affected communities.
Registration gaps
TAF Africa targeted at least 300 registrations during the outreach. Many displaced persons at the camp said they had voter records but had lost their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) while fleeing attacks.
“Many fled their homes without their PVCs. Others had them destroyed when their villages were attacked. We are helping them replace those cards so they can vote,” Mr Tyokase said.
The exercise, however, exposed operational challenges.
At the time PREMIUM TIMES visited the camp, only two INEC officials were registering thousands of potential applicants, leaving long queues and uncertainty over whether everyone would be attended to before the deadline.
Asked whether the number of officials was adequate, Mr Tyokase said staffing decisions rested with INEC but expressed hope the commission would respond to the turnout.
“INEC is here now and can see the opportunity. If they cannot finish today, it should be their responsibility to continue until everybody in this camp is registered,” he said.
INEC’s assurance
INEC said it had already been conducting registration in several camps before the TAF Africa intervention.
The Head of Voter Education at INEC’s Benue office, Adeniji Abubakar, said officials had visited other camps across the state and promised that eligible displaced persons would not be excluded.
“Nobody will be left out. It is their right as Nigerian citizens. Everyone who presents themselves for registration will be attended to,” he said.
Mr Abubakar said the commission would continue registration in camps where necessary before the exercise ends.
On demands for special polling units inside camps during elections, he said that the decision would depend on policies to be announced later by the commission.
INEC’s 2018 Regulations for Voting by Internally Displaced Persons allow the commission to establish dedicated IDP voting centres in recognised camps. The regulations also provide for voter registration, PVC distribution and election-day voting for displaced persons within their states of origin.
‘We want to go home’
For many residents, obtaining a voter card represents more than participation in an election.
It is also tied to hopes of returning home after years of displacement.
Nancy Iorundu, one of the displaced residents, said she lost her voter card when attackers burnt her village.
“Many of us lost our voter cards because our homes were burnt. We appreciate this opportunity. I am registering so I can vote for leaders who will help take us back to our village,” she said.
Patricia Orshio said the exercise was welcome but warned that too few registration officials could prevent many people from participating.
“Everything in my community was burnt. This is an opportunity to register and vote for people who can stand for us as internally displaced persons. We want to go home,” she said.
“The challenge is that only two people are doing the registration while thousands are waiting. Government should extend the deadline and deploy more officials.”
Kingsley Igbadoo, another displaced resident, had waited for hours without being attended to.
“If you don’t have a voter card, you don’t have a say in who leads you. I have been here since morning, and my number is still above 200. We need more hands because many people still want to register,” he said.
Risk of exclusion
The concerns raised by displaced residents mirror broader warnings by humanitarian organisations over the scale of displacement in Benue.
Government officials estimate that as many as 1.5 million people have been displaced by years of attacks linked to the farmers-herders conflict, although humanitarian agencies have officially documented more than 500,000 internally displaced persons across the state.
Amnesty International recently warned that repeated attacks have left hundreds of thousands living in overcrowded camps with inadequate food, healthcare, water and sanitation, describing the situation as a looming humanitarian disaster.
The rights group said many communities continue to flee violence, with thousands displaced after the June attacks on Yelewata, further increasing pressure on existing camps.
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Researchers have also documented long-standing challenges affecting displaced persons, including the loss of identity documents, destruction of homes, limited access to education and healthcare, and difficulties replacing official records.
The voter registration exercise highlights another concern.
While INEC’s regulations provide for registration and voting in recognised IDP camps, humanitarian workers say many informal settlements across Benue remain undocumented, raising fears that displaced people outside officially recognised camps could struggle to access registration services before the deadline.
For residents like Ms Orshio, the issue goes beyond elections.
“We want to vote,” she said. “But we also want to be seen, heard, and eventually return home.”
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