A non-governmental organisation, the Network for Peace and Inclusive Development (NAPID), has organised a town hall meeting to sensitise women and youths in Niger State to voter rights.

The meeting held in Minna on Wednesday aimed to educate women and youths on the importance of participating in the electoral process and exercising their right to vote.

The theme of the town meeting was “Empowering Citizens, Understand Your Voting Rights, Reject Thuggery, and Stand Against Electoral Manipulation for Peace and Credible Elections.”

Executive Director of NAPID, Mohammed Isah, said the programme was designed to empower youths with knowledge of their voting rights and responsibilities.

He emphasised the importance of informed and empowered citizens in democratic governance

He stated, “Elections are the cornerstone of democratic governance, providing citizens the opportunity to choose their leaders, hold them accountable and replace them if they fail to deliver.’’

According to him, voter turnout in Nigeria has been declining, citing the 2023 general elections where participation rate dropped to about 28 per cent from over 69 per cent in the previous election.

“This worrying trend reflects widespread voter apathy, distrust in the electoral process, insecurity, poverty, and the menace of electoral violence and thuggery,” he added.

Mr Isah attributed the decline in voter turnout to attacks on electoral officers, incidents of ballot snatching and targeted voter suppression in some regions.

He noted that democracy cannot thrive without peaceful participation, credible elections and the active involvement of informed citizens.

He appreciated partners, including PASSCARD Consulting Limited, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), for their collaboration.

Earlier in his remarks, the state Director of NOA, Yahaya Gbongbo, said that peaceful elections cannot be achieved with thuggery, vote buying and manipulation.

He said, “For a credible and peaceful election to be achieved, it must be devoid of thuggery, manipulation and vote buying.’’

He also highlighted the importance of voter education, saying that citizens should be enlightened on where, when and who to vote for.

Mr Gbongbo noted that without this knowledge, the percentage of people that would come out to vote during elections would drastically be reduced.

The programme featured a presentation on Youth and Women as Peace Ambassadors in Elections, delivered by Maimuna Raji-Egigogo from PASSCARD Consulting Ltd.

(NAN)