Is E-voting Systems based on Blockchain Technology Efficient in Nigeria General Elections?

Abstract

One of the most common problems of election in Nigeria is inefficient data management. All subsequent elections were blighted by inefficient data management that resulted in violence in the country and distrust among political parties. These flaws prompted the government at different times to modify the nation's electoral systems ranging from party systems to electoral management body reformation and electronics verification technologies. In this paper, we investigated the opinions of 71 Nigeria citizens about the Nigeria General Elections (NGEs) processes and data management in these processes. We found that the majority of the participants rated the existing voting system in Nigeria to be of low effectiveness and reliability. The majority of the participants believe that an e-voting system based on Blockchain technology has the capability to prevent alterations in the voting processes.

Using Blockchain Technology to Curb Voter Fraud in Nigeria

“…This system was used before the advent of the Fourth Republic in 1999 after the transfer of power from the military to civilian rule. PVS in Nigeria has evolved from the Modified Open Ballot System to the Re-modified Open Secret Ballot System, Verification and Accreditation Systems (VAS), helped by Electronics Card Readers (ECR) (Ikuero et al, 2021) and most recently, the Bi-Modal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) although some scholars have argued that the Nigerian's voting system is still prone to irregularities (Ajayi, 2006).…”