INEC Partners NOA on Voter Mobilisation

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has resolved to partner the National Orientation Agency (NOA) on voter mobilisation ahead of the nationwide Continuous Voter Registration, November 8 Anambra Governorship election and the 2027 elections.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, made this known  yesterday  in Abuja when the Director-General of NOA, Lanre Issa-Onilu, paid him a courtesy visit.

He said as the national election management body, the commission is aware that its responsibility is multi-stakeholder and inter-agency in nature. 

To succeed, Yakubu noted that they must engage all stakeholders and every national institution relevant to the commission’s mandate, saying one of such national institutions is the NOA.

The chairman said the electoral body would like to explore further areas of partnership through its Voter Education & Publicity and other relevant departments, particularly with the recent creation of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Division under the ICT Department of the commission.

He added: “Another area where we need to strengthen our partnership is voter mobilisation. While INEC will continue its voter education efforts, the NOA should, working with other stakeholders such as the political parties, civil society organisations and the media, help in the area of voter mobilisation.  

“The aim is to increase voter turnout and greater participation of the under-represented demographics in our electoral process, particularly youths, women and Persons with Disability (PwDs). 

“It is for this reason that NOA has been included in the expanded membership of our Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES). The Commission is also making efforts to revamp the National Inter-Agency Committee on Voter Education and Publicity (NICVEP) in which NOA will, again, play an active role.

“Your visit is coming at a critical time in our preparations for the Anambra State Governorship election holding on 8th November 2025, and the 2027 general election.”

Earlier, Issa-Onilu said that the mandate of NOA is to educate citizens on responsible citizenship, civic duties and creating awareness on election participation.

He said that building patriotic citizenship is more important than building roads and bridges.

Isa-Onilu noted that governments at all levels must be intentional in delivering policies that will trigger patriotism to the country from citizens.

He pointed out that patriotism to one’s country cannot be forced on citizens, nor can it be enforced by a piece of legislation, but rather it is a natural attractive force that can only be galvanised by good governance.

 Issa-Onilu stated:  “There has been a series of efforts in the past to galvanise Nigerians, to make us patriotic, but as it is said, you cannot enforce patriotism, and you cannot legislate it. You have to motivate it. Patriotism is like force, there must be an attraction. Which means that the country must be attractive. 

“You must do things that must attract the citizens. Most times, such things are intangible. They are not things that we can see because they are psychological.

“We believe that when we are able to communicate government activities well, we will be able to galvanise Nigerians towards patriotism and shared values. It will make the work of INEC easier.”

“We have a president who understands what it means to have a united and cohesive citizenry. He says all the time that we are members of the same family, living in the same building, albeit different rooms. So whatever affects that vision, affects all of us.”