As part of preparation for the 2023 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has commenced training of political party officials on the use of the redesigned INEC’s Candidate Nomination Portal, ICNP.
The ICNP which has been in use since 2020 Edo and Ondo States Governorship elections, is one of the technological innovations introduced by INEC in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic to reduce physical interactions and automate its processes.
Speaking at 4-day ICNP training for officials of political parties in Abuja, the Chairperson of INEC Legal Services, Clearance and Complaints Committee, LSC&CC, Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu, said a new provisions in the Electoral Act, 2022, made provision for several technological innovations.
Agbamuche-Mbu added that the Electoral Act has additionally given the commission a general discretion to apply technology as it sees fit.
A statement from INEC indicates that the four-day training was organised in collaboration with International Foundation for Electoral Systems, IFES, in Abuja.
It noted that the INEC official further disclosed that the portal was recently redesigned to accommodate the greater demands of a wider, general election nomination process.
“This training is of utmost importance to political parties as it will enlighten them on the guidelines for nomination of candidates and the new procedure of the ICNP bearing in mind that political parties will be submitting forms on the portal in respect of candidates they intend to sponsor for the various offices in One Thousand, Four Hundred and Ninety-Nine (1, 499) constituencies in Nigeria.
“It is expected that at the conclusion of this training, political parties would have gained extensive knowledge on the new nomination process for the 2023 General Election, demonstrate practical knowledge on how to make submissions on the portal and be equipped with the approved Guidelines for the Nomination of Candidates for Elections,” she said.
Also speaking, INEC’s Director of ICT, Engr. Chidi Nwafor, stressed the importance of the role played by participants, stating that they were responsible for uploading the Nominations of Candidates in the off season elections since the introduction of the portal in 2020.
Nwafor further explained that the ICNP to be used for the 2023 general election would be 90 per cent automated, a movement from the semi automated process previously used.
He added that the commission, in its determination to continue to improve the use of technology in the management of elections, has decided to use indigenous content and capacity sourced within Nigeria.
He implored the participants, who were mostly IT professionals from the political parties, to continue to work with the Commission to improve the system, and expressed the hope that a lot would be achieved as they were going to be engaged in practical hands-on training for the next 3 days.