Lawyers are unanimous in their position that it is unfair and unjust to deny awaiting trial access to perform their civil duty of voting for candidates of their choices during general elections in Nigeria..
Chief Felix Edewor a legal practitioner based in Abuja told our Correspondent that it is unfair, morally wrong and illegal to deny awaiting trials their Human Rights to vote .
He said that citizens rights to vote during general elections is Constitutionally guaranteed and there is no basis for electoral bodies to continue to deny awaiting trials enabling facilities to exercise their right.
Chief Edewor said that “only persons who can’t legally and lawfully vote are those convicts serving jail terms” or banned by an order of the court for a certain period.
Another lawyer , Augusten Okafor collaborated the position of Edewo and added that the issue whether awaiting trials in custody can vote had been settled in a decision of Court of Appeal delivered in 2018 that affirmed the right of awaiting-trial inmates to vote in a judgement delivered in 2014 by the Federal High Court Benin City.
Also speaking Pius Ofulue another lawyer said that reasons why awaiting trials are not able to vote during elections in the country is the inability of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to provide the enabling facilities for awaiting trials to vote.