Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna, says electronic voting is the surest way to credible and transparent elections in the country.

Speaking at an interactive session on Friday in Owerri, the capital of Imo state, el-Rufai said electronic voting and real-time transmission of results would tackle electoral malpractices, restore public trust in Nigeria’s elections, and strengthen democratic stability.

The former Kaduna governor expressed concern over the low voter turnout in the recent elections, saying Nigeria must build trust in the electoral process and promote citizen participation.

“Given our stormy history, 25 years of unbroken rule by elected governments indicates that our country is on a pathway to democratic stability. But voter turnout at presidential elections has been declining since 2007,” he said.

“Less than 30% of registered voters bothered to vote in 2023, down from over 60% in 2003. Also, the integrity of every presidential election result from 1999 to date has been challenged in the courts, except in 2015 when President Goodluck Jonathan personally and commendably chose not to.”

El-Rufai said low voter turnout should worry every democrat because when the electorate feels alienated from the political process, it could lead to “unwelcome fragility”.

“We should try to ascertain what could encourage them to resume exercising that fundamental democratic right. This, in my view, should also include measures to assure them that the election process is free from threats of violence or coercion, while ensuring that the results would accurately reflect the preferences expressed by voters at the ballot box,” he said.