Otti Raises Alarm Over Voter Apathy as Borno Leads INEC Pre-Registration

Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has expressed deep concern over the growing voter apathy across Nigeria, linking it to widespread distrust and alleged manipulation within the electoral process.

Speaking in Port Harcourt at the opening of the first international conference on “Advancing Politics and Governance for Sustainable Development” organised by the University of Port Harcourt’s Centre for Politics, Otti lamented the continued decline in voter turnout despite the huge resources spent on political mobilisation.

He called on African leaders to prioritise inclusive governance and equitable resource distribution to restore public confidence in democracy. Represented by former Senate Minority Whip, Darlington Nwokocha, Otti described true development as “the fair distribution of resources among the people.”

Conference Chairman, Tonye Princewill, noted that economic growth alone could not deliver sustainable development without strong governance structures. The event drew participants from Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, the UAE, the U.S., Canada, and Australia.

Meanwhile, new data from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) shows Borno State leading the nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) with 826,130 online pre-registrations out of 8,003,196 recorded so far. Osun followed with 646,580, Lagos 604,819, and Kebbi 581,135. Abia ranked lowest with 11,221 registrations.

In Lagos, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced cash rewards to boost voter participation in the ongoing CVR exercise. State APC Chairman, Cornelius Ojelabi, said N20 million will go to the local council with the highest voter registrations, while wards and polling units with strong performance will receive N5 million and N1 million respectively.

He urged party leaders to mobilise residents across all parts of the state to register ahead of the 2027 general elections.