The Centre for Infrastructural and Technological Advancement for the Blind (CITAB) has warned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to move beyond symbolic inclusion and ensure functional accessibility for blind voters ahead of the August 15 governorship election in Osun State, cautioning that failure to comply could lead to legal action under the Electoral Act (Amendment) 2026.
The warning was contained in a press release issued on April 9, 2026, and signed by the Executive Chairman of CITAB, Jolomi George Fenemigho, following a review of recent accessibility pledges made by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Osun State, Dr. Mutiu Agboke.
CITAB stated that Nigeria has moved beyond an era of charitable inclusion, stressing that the mere presence of assistive tools without functional systems to support their use now constitutes a statutory breach under the amended Electoral Act. The organization emphasized that with the law now in full force, the failure to provide functional, staff-supported assistive technology for blind voters should no longer be treated as a logistical oversight but as a violation of legal obligations.
Fenemigho criticized INEC’s focus on ward-level mobility and election-day support, describing it as a diversion from what he identified as the most critical barrier — the inaccessibility of the online Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) portal for blind Nigerians using screen reader technologies such as JAWS and NVDA.
He noted that the inability of visually impaired citizens to independently navigate the CVR portal undermines claims of progress in electoral inclusion. According to him, meaningful innovation in the electoral process must extend to all citizens, including those who rely on assistive technologies to participate in civic activities.
The CITAB Chairman also condemned the recurring deployment of untrained ad-hoc personnel tasked with managing assistive devices during elections, stating that the lack of proper training often leaves such devices unused at polling units and creates avoidable barriers for blind voters. He called for a transparent and publicly accessible training framework for electoral officers on professional assistance and the effective use of assistive technologies.
Furthermore, the organization demanded decentralized grassroots training sessions for blind voters to familiarize themselves with Braille ballot guides before election day. CITAB warned that distributing assistive tools without prior user training could discourage participation among persons with disabilities and contribute to voter apathy.
In conclusion, CITAB issued a legal ultimatum to INEC in Osun State to immediately ensure and independently verify the full accessibility of the CVR portal for screen reader users, publish training manuals and compliance procedures for staff assigned to disability support, and implement time-bound, community-based pre-election training on Braille ballot guides in collaboration with disability-led organizations.
The group warned that if the election proceeds with inaccessible systems and inadequately trained personnel, it may challenge the validity of the electoral process in court under the Electoral Act (Amendment) 2026.
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