Nigerians without PVCs won’t vote next year, says INEC

Nigerians who are yet to collect their permanent voters cards (PVCs) will not be able to vote in the 2015 elections, despite protest by National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) on Tuesday, December 16 over the “poorly and uncoordinated” distribution of PVCs in Lagos.

Kayode Idowu, spokesman for Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Attahiru Jega, said temporary voting cards will not qualify its holder to vote.

“They (voters) will not be able to vote next year until they get the permanent voters’ cards and they wait until January to get it,” Idowu clarified.

The issuance of the PVCs has ended in Lagos but many residents say they are yet to get theirs, forcing students to protest their likely disenfranchisement.

Idowu said the distribution of the cards, though stopped at the polling units, would continue at INEC offices in all the 774 councils nationwide. “We have the INEC local government office; they (prospective voters) can go there and get it.”

How this will affect turnout at the elections is still unclear. But a rough survey conducted by TheNiche showed that a large chunk of the voting population in Lagos has not gotten their cards.

“When I tried to collect it here in Lagos, they were fighting at the centre. I cannot die,” said Nteoniro Roberts, a resident.

The same tale was told by fellow residents, Ogunmowo Dare and Shobola Ibukun, who said the centres where they were supposed to collect their cards were rowdy.

Moronkeji Temitope, another resident, complained that the attitude of INEC officials was the put off.

Her words: “I registered the last time and I was told I could not register again. I tried asking them why I could not be re-registered; they did not answer me. We are many like that who they ignored.”

The INEC said those who registered in the 2011 exercise cannot do so again as that will amount to breaking the law which bars double registration.

“They are not supposed to register. They will have to go to where they registered and get the card and apply for the transfer of the data so that it can be sent to their unit of choice,” Idowu explained.

There are others who are not keen to get their cards because of the hassle involved.

“My friends told me about the ordeal they passed through in trying to collect their cards. In fact, most of them did not eventually get it. That is why I did not bother attempting to go and get mine,” narrated Ameze Ogunmwonyi.

The same complaint was expressed by Olawunmi Esther, who lives in the Ogba area of Lagos, and Hawa Ibrahim, who resides in Ikeja.

For others, the PVC is for everything but election.

“It is not like I am going to vote in the 2015 elections, I only collected the card because there are some interviews you will go for and they will request for it. Thankfully, I was able to register again and I got the temporary card, so by next year January, I will collect the permanent one,” Abasi-Ifreke Brendan said.

Voters Awareness Initiative (WAI) President, Wale Ogunade, criticised the PVC project is a failure.

“The elections are less than 50 days away and many are yet to collect their PVCs. How do they vote without it? People have gone to the centre several times and they (INEC officials) are nowhere to be found.

“It is INEC’s statutory responsibility to ensure that every Nigerian votes. The whole exercise is nothing to write home about. It is a failed project and a fraud,” he stated.