By John Ogunsemore
Former senator for Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani has advocated imposing a “heavy fine” on those who collect permanent voters card (PVC) but refuse to vote in elections.
This, he said, would help address the issue of low voter turnout in elections.
Sani said this in an X post on Sunday.
Daily Sun recalls that in the presidential election held on February 25, 2023, only 24.9 million persons out of the 93.47 million registered voters voted.
This represents 26.72 percent voter turnout.
According to a Premium Times report, voter turnout in the 2023 election was the lowest since Nigeria’s independence.
The report stated that in the 36 states, less than half of the eligible population turned out to vote, and no state had a turnout above 40 per cent.
In his tweet, Sani said the issue of low voter turnout could be addressed by fining PVC holders that refuse to vote on election day.
He said, “Heavy fine should be imposed for those who collected PVC but refused to vote.
“That is the best way to address the problem of low voter turnout.”