INEC and the Electronic Card Reader

INEC AND THE ELECTRONIC CARD READER

     The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) can currently boast of the use of Electronic Card Reader otherwise known as ‘Smart card reader’ during elections in Nigeria. Since the inception of the INEC in the Nigeria’s political terrain, the leadership of the institution had been working assiduously toward ensuring that the country could boast of a credible and fair election. This may be the reason the former Chairman of the commission, Prof Attahiru Jega thought it wise to initiate the Smart Card Reader prior to the last general elections, which has been in use till date.

     Though Prof Jega may have succeeded in coming up with a novel idea by introducing the aforementioned gadget, it’s worth noting that the current boss of the body, Prof Mahmood Yakubu has an enormous task ahead of him towards ensuring that the said laudable invention wouldn’t end up being a curse in disguise.

     It’s not anymore news that the ongoing use of the device in question has been bedeviled by several shortcomings to include malfunctioning, inadequate power supply and what have you. The INEC, inaugurated in 1998, has since inception encountered too many controversies and predicaments in the run up to elections in the country, most notably the April 2007 and 2015 general elections respectively; the ongoing challenges faced by the use of card readers seem to have added to the numerous plights of the commission.

     A Smart card reader is an electronic device that reads smart cards such as the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card and Voter’s card, as the case may be. There are so many forms of smart card readers used for different purposes. In the banking industry, we have smart card readers that read the ATM cards. But here, we’re concerned about the electoral smart card reader. The electoral smart card reader is a portable electronic voter authentication gadget, configured to read only the Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) issued by the INEC.

     The device, which displays the authentic information of the prospective voter via the use of fingerprint, was designed specifically for the accreditation process or authentication of eligible voters before voting. The machine is usually configured or programmed to only read the PVCs of a particular polling unit as well as work only on election day(s). The card reader has obviously helped in confirming the eligibility of the prospective voters. It has equally assisted in checking excesses as regards double/multiple registration.

     Among all, it enables the electoral exercise to be carried out faster since it can accredit as many intending voters as possible within a shortest interval; suffice it to say that it saves time. In addition, it enables the officials of the INEC to conduct the election easily or at ease unlike the manual system whereby the personnel would be required to put in or exhaust all their energies, thereby creating room for effectiveness and efficiency. This implies that, if properly utilized, it warrants the electoral umpire to engage fewer individuals or ad-hoc staff for any incoming election. Hence, the card reader isn’t just labour effective, but equally cost effective.

     Although the benefits inherent in the use of the smart card reader cannot be overemphasized, it’s worthy to acknowledge that the challenges that accompany it cannot be overlooked if truly we are concerned about embracing a society that can wholly boast of free, fair and credible polls. It’s not anymore news that, while in use, the card reader has reportedly malfunctioned in various quarters across the federation ever since it came into existence in Nigeria, thereby making the INEC officials in charge of the concerned polling units to resort to manual voting.

      To this end, there’s need for creation of a special technically-inclined unit within the INEC quarters. Such unit/department to be manned by an expert must contain all it takes as regards servicing or sustenance of the said gadget. The unit would go a long way to eradicate ‘fire brigade’ approach, which isn’t unusual in the Nigerian society. It would as well help to create a mobile technical committee that would monitor the functionality of the card readers throughout any election as well as ensure that the various polling units involved are well equipped with the needed materials including electricity supply gadgets prior to the election. There would also be need for the unit to be more concerned about providing special electronic chargers or charging devices at the various voting centres so that the card readers wouldn’t need to depend on power supply as long as the voting lasts.

      Above all, there is need for the device to be manufactured in the country henceforth. There are capable hands that can actualize it; all the government needs to do is to empower them via the proposed technical unit. We can’t continue to import what we can produce, especially at this moment we are concerned about diversification. I therefore call on INEC to embrace the fullness of technology so that the awaited society would be embraced soonest. Think about it!    

 

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)

-ICT/Engineering Consultant, Researcher, Blogger, Analyst & Activist-

Founder/CEO, Docfred (Nig.) Ent.
_________________________________

frednwaozor@gmail.com

http://frednwaozor.blogspot.com
Twitter: @mediambassador        

Payroll Palaver and ICT Perspective

PAYROLL PALAVER AND ICT PERSPECTIVE

     The last time I checked, the Nigerian civil service system was deeply bedeviled by a cankerworm known as ‘ghost workers’. The syndrome, which isn’t peculiar to the federal level, is indeed ubiquitous that no certain level/unit of government is exempted whenever its scourge is being discussed. Funnily enough, the anomaly has lingered that anyone could insinuate that it’s a norm.

     Two months ago, precisely on Thursday 5^th May 2016, during the meeting between federal ministries and Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) in Lagos State as organized by the Minister of Information and Culture – Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun categorically disclosed that the ongoing #165 billion monthly salaries cum allowances of federal civil servants was over-bloated, thus could no longer be sustained by the Federal Government (FG).

     Mrs. Adeosun who was speaking on the economy reform agenda of the present administration, stated that the said fund represented about forty percent (40%) of the total spending made by the FG. According to her, the figure was outrageous; hence, government was pursuing aggressive measures towards detecting as well as prosecuting ghost workers and other saboteurs in the system. She landed with a mind-boggling revelation that the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), which wasn’t fully functional, still had names of about ten thousand (10,000) workers on its payroll regularly serviced by the FG’s coffers.

      In a related development, barely few weeks ago, over a huge sum of #4 billion fraud was reportedly discovered in Aso Rock, the Nigeria’s seat of power. The discovery was made by President Muhammadu Buhari’s National Security Adviser (NSA), Major Gen Babagana Monguno (rtd). Aside his alleged shocking discovery, which was made after a general security auditing and verification exercise ordered by Mr. President, the NSA further disclosed that  names of twenty-nine (29) ghost security personnel had been on security payroll in the Presidency over the years.

     The various states and LGAs across the federation aren’t exceptional. On Thursday 26^th May 2016, the Bayelsa State government said it had uncovered payroll fraud in the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), with the discovery of over 765 illicitly employed teachers in the existing eight local government councils in the state. According to the report, names of fifty (50) dead teachers were equally found on the payroll of Ogbia Local Government Education Authority (LGEA) alone.

      It baffles me that at this age, Nigeria is still lagging behind as regards Information and Communications Technology (ICT). We can’t continue indulging ourselves in retrogressive issues in an era when ICT or Hi-Tech has succeeded in simplifying everything, or unraveling every mystery related to information. Most times I wonder; is it that Nigeria cannot afford the services of ICT, or that she can’t boast of or source for the required ICT personnel?

     The answer, of course, is No. Nigeria can afford all of the above. Her plight ab initio, has been lack of orientation and corruption. The people she had had in positions of authority refused to be convinced that ICT is the only way forward concerning the lingering payroll palaver in the country, perhaps owing to lack of political will occasioned by corruption. However, we are intensely glad the current administration apparently detests corruption profusely.

      Now that the President Buhari – led government is interested in getting it right, it must acknowledge that obtaining a comprehensive database for all the federal workers is long overdue. Such measure can only be actualized via a forensic approach. To this end, a special unit/department must be created by law under the Ministry of Finance. The proposed unit is subject to be manned by well qualified and reliable ICT experts; and no one ought to have access to the department, except its staff and the director/HOD.

      Additionally, an agency comprising thoroughly scrutinized individuals ought to be set up by law to monitor or oversee the day-to-day activity of the department. The agency would ascertain whenever a worker dies or retires, as the case may be, among other likely events, and thereafter ensure that the record is duly implemented by the unit. Moreover, from time-to-time through their oversight functions, the federal legislators should invite the members, particularly the chairman, of the agency to keep them abreast of happenings.

     For the above unit to function tactically and properly, every federal MDA must equally boast of a competent and reliable ICT unit that would regularly update the former, or the umbrella body, on matters relating to employment, death, retirement, expulsion, retrenchment, or what have you; the said agency would assist in monitoring the genuineness and adequacy of the aforementioned cooperation. For efficiency’s sake, the unit must engage a viable and reliable software consulting firm toward ensuring holistic update of its software maintenance.

     The above measure ought to as well be replicated on the part of payment of pensions and gratuities. And, the various state governments should endeavour to borrow a leaf from the overall proposed approach. Let’s embrace ICT now, to enjoy forever. Think about it!

 

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)
-ICT/Engineering Consultant, Researcher, Blogger, Analyst & Activist-
Founder/CEO, Docfred (Nig.) Ent. - Owerri
____________________________________

frednwaozor@gmail.com

http://frednwaozor.blogspot.com\
Twitter: @mediambassador        

 

Internet Hacking and Nigeria's Future

INTERNET HACKING AND NIGERIA’S FUTURE

     The last time I checked, Computer/Internet Hacking constituted the most recent cybercrimes. Prior to the invention of the Internet, criminals had to dig through people’s trash or intercept their mails to steal their personal information. Now that all the required information is available online, criminals presently use the Internet to steal people’s identities, either via trick or infecting their devices with malware.

      Most cybercrimes are committed by individuals or small groups, though large organized criminal groups also take advantage of the Internet. These so-called professional criminals find new ways to commit old or ancient crimes. They treat cyber crimes like a business and form global criminal communities. Criminal communities share strategies and tools and can combine forces to launch coordinated attacks. They even have an underground marketplace where cyber criminals can purchase and sell stolen information or identities.

      It’s very difficult to track cyber criminals down, because the Internet makes it easier for people to do things anonymously and from any location on the globe. Needless to say that, many computers used in various destinations have actually been hacked and are being controlled by someone far away.

      For hackers who want to come clean and turn away from crime out of pretence, one option is to work for the people they used to torment by becoming their security consultants or employees. These set of hackers are referred to as “Grey Hat Hackers”. In the past, they were addressed as “Black Hat Hackers” who used their computer expertise to break into systems and steal information illegally while posing as a friend or dedicated employee/consultant. But presently, some of them are acting as “White Hat Hackers” who specialize in testing the security strength of their clients’ information systems.

     If the interest of the White Hat Hackers is to be paid, they will attempt to hack into a company’s network and then present the affected company with a report detailing the existing security loopholes of the company and how those anomalies could be tackled. The advantage of this is that, they can use their skills for a good cause and help stop other cyber criminals, since keeping up with security and cyber criminals is a fulltime job and many companies can’t afford financially to have someone totally dedicated to it.

     Another recent devastating aspect of internet hacking is the “Social Engineering” routine. Social engineering is a tactic used by cyber criminals that use lies and manipulations to trick people into revealing their personal information. Social engineering attackers frequently involve very convincing fake stories to lure victims into their trap. Some of these tricks include: sending victims an email that claims there’s problem with their account and has a link to a fake website, trying to convince victims to open email attachments that contain malware, pretending to be a network/account administrator and asking for the victim’s password to perform maintenance activity, as well as claiming that the victim has won a prize but must give their credit card information or bank account details in order to receive it, just to mention but a few.

     The recent antics of cyber criminals, which are barbaric and inhumane, call for constant and consistent update of advanced anti-hacking computer software by software producers, and the adequate dissemination of the said software to the apt quarters. Presently such most developing countries as Nigeria and what have you, are less-privileged in regard to advanced anti-hacking or anti-malware software; hence they need to act fast in this regard. Nigerian could presently boast of world class experts on software programming; these set of persons especially the young ones need to be encouraged by the government by setting up an industry that would enable them commercialize their expertise. 

      The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is supposed to have a thoroughly equipped Internet-based communication unit comprising well experienced experts and consultants. Such unit, which would function as a spy, would help to checkmate activities being carried out by every internet user at all nooks and crannies of the country on a daily basis.

      Inter alia, the bill regarding Cybercrimes that was recently passed by the 7^th National Assembly needs to be reviewed by the 8^th assembly with a view to ensuring that every required clause regarding internet hacking is included, or towards making amends where necessary. There would be need to set up special court to be made up of uncompromising judicial custodians that would prosecute anyone accused of any form of cybercrime, particularly internet hacking which has caused the Nigerian society a colossal economic loss.

      Most importantly, every computer/internet firm owner should endeavour to engage an expert on Ethical Hacking. Our various schools at all levels, the tertiary institutions in particular, should on their part take teachings on internet hacking more seriously in the ongoing general studies on Computer Literacy.

     People either as individuals or corporate bodies are advised to set strict passwords, change them regularly as well as never endeavour to share them with anyone to enable them not to exclaim ‘had I known’. Think about it!

         

 

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)
-Engineering/ICT Consultant, Researcher, Blogger, Analyst & Activist-
Chief Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career Development - Owerri
________________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
http://frednwaozor.blogspot.com
Twitter: @mediambassador