The Centre for Infrastructural and Technological Advancement for the Blind (CITAB),, has reviewed the recent “accessibility pledges” made by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Osun State, Dr. Mutiu Agboke, ahead of the August 15 Governorship election, and has warned that symbolic inclusion without functional access now amounts to a statutory breach under the Electoral Act (Amendment) 2026.
This was contained in a press release issued today by Jolomi George Fenemigho, Executive Chairman of CITAB.
CITAB stated that Nigeria is no longer in an era of charitable inclusion where the presence of assistive tools can be used as evidence of access while the systems that make those tools usable remain broken. The group stressed that with the Electoral Act (Amendment) 2026 now in full force, INEC’s failure to provide functional, staff-supported assistive technology for blind voters is no longer a logistical lapse but a violation of law.
Fenemigho said INEC’s current emphasis on ward-level “mobility” and election day support is a diversion from the most basic barrier: the online Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) portal, which remains inaccessible to blind Nigerians using screen readers such as JAWS and NVDA.
According to him: “If a visually impaired Nigerian cannot independently navigate INEC’s CVR portal to begin registration, then promises of Braille guides on election day are not progress, they are an insult. Innovation cannot be reserved for only citizens who can see a screen.”
The CITAB leader also condemned what he described as the recurring problem of untrained ad-hoc personnel who are deployed with assistive tools they do not understand, leaving devices unused in polling units and blind voters exposed to avoidable barriers. He rejected what he called the “NYSC excuse,” and demanded a transparent, publishable training framework for electoral officers on professional assistance and the use of assistive technologies.
Fenemigho stated: “A staff member who cannot competently assist a blind voter is not a neutral mistake; that failure is a direct threat to the franchise. INEC cannot continue to hide behind ‘human error’ while the same errors repeat every election cycle.”
CITAB further demanded decentralized, grassroots training sessions for blind voters to master the Braille ballot guides before election day, warning that deploying tools without pre-training is a deliberate strategy that fuels voter apathy and suppresses participation among persons with disabilities, noting that millions of Nigerians live with disabilities and cannot be treated as a niche constituency.
In conclusion, CITAB issued a legal ultimatum to INEC in Osun State: immediately fix and independently verify full accessibility of the CVR portal for screen reader users; publish the training manual and compliance procedure for all ad-hoc and permanent staff assigned to assistive technology and disability support; and implement time bound, community based pre-election training on Braille ballot guides and related tools in collaboration with disability led organizations. The group warned that if INEC proceeds with an election where tools are displayed but the portal remains inaccessible and staff remain untrained, CITAB is prepared to challenge the validity of the process in court under the Electoral Act (Amendment) 2026.
