INEC debunked the claims of electorate voting without PVC as unfounded, while decrying the destruction of Commission’s facilities.
By Emma Ogbuehi
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has debunked claims that citizens can vote without the Permanent Voters’ Card (PVC).
INEC National Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, who made the clarification, maintained that allowing that would be a gross violation of the Electoral Act.
Yakubu who spoke at the induction retreat for Resident Electoral Commissioners in Lagos on Wednesday, also decried the constant destruction of INEC facilities by arsonists, stressing that the responsibility of the commission is to conduct a credible election in 2023.
Unconfirmed news reports had claimed that voters without PVCs would be allowed to vote in the 2023 general elections, attributing their sources to anonymous INEC officials. But Yakubu has dismissed the claims as unfounded.
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He said, “I want to debunk the misleading statement that the electorate can vote on election day without voters’ cards. This has been trending online since last week, this is absolutely incorrect.
“For anybody to vote during the election, he or she must be a registered voter, in line with the commission’s position that no PVC, no voting. It is a legal requirement. It will be a violation of the Electoral Act, 2022, if it is set aside. I ask Nigerians to disregard any suggestion that a person can vote without PVC.
“For the avoidance of doubt, I want to refer to section 47 (1) of the Electoral Act 2022, which says, ‘A person intending to vote in an election shall present himself with a PVC to the presiding officer for accreditation at the polling unit in the constituency in which his name is registered’. The position of this is very clear.”
While decrying the destruction of INEC facilities across the country, Yakubu said, “Let me comment on the troubling issue of attack on our offices and the destruction of facilities and assets across the country. In the last four months, five offices of the commission were attacked by yet unknown persons. Buildings were destroyed, critical facilities lost. These faculties include 1,992 ballot boxes, 399 voting cubicles, 22 electric power generators as well as thousands of uncollected PVCs, among many other items.
“These attacks must stop and perpetrators should be apprehended and prosecuted. Our responsibility is to conduct the 2023 general election. I want to ensure Nigerians that the items destroyed are being replaced but there is a limit to our ability to keep replacing lost or destroyed items with just 86 days to the general elections”.
He appealed to the security agencies, traditional, community leaders and all well-meaning Nigerians to assist in stopping the attacks, adding however that the ultimate solution is arresting and prosecuting the culprits to serve as deterrence for others.
