All‑rights Foundation Africa observed on Saturday that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) deployed inadequate assistive tools at polling units for persons with disabilities (PWDs) during the governorship and state houses of assembly elections. The foundation’s Chief Executive Officer, Jake Epelle, highlighted this issue in the group’s Mid‑Day Situation Report on the March 18 elections.
TAF Africa, funded by the European Union through its Support for Democratic Governance in Nigeria programme, deployed 340 observers and an election‑observer app to provide real‑time information on PWD participation. The foundation’s findings were based on reports from 228 polling units analyzed at 1:00 p.m. Epelle noted that while election officials arrived on time, many PWDs could not vote properly because of the lack of assistive tools.
According to the observers, 91 % of the 228 polling units recorded the early arrival of INEC officials, and 68 % began voting on schedule. Accessibility of polling units was reported at 94 %, and priority voting was observed in 76 % of the locations. However, the deployment of assistive tools was markedly insufficient: 75 % of the observed units lacked braille ballot guides for the visually impaired, 87 % had no magnifying glasses for persons with albinism, and 63 % were missing large‑font graphic posters for the deaf.
The foundation urged INEC to investigate the reasons behind the inadequate deployment of assistive tools to polling units with registered persons with disabilities, warning that such shortcomings could disenfranchise this vulnerable group.
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