Over 241, 715 Permanent Voter Cards, PVC, have yet to be collected by the voters in Kogi, Imo and Bayelsa States two weeks to the October 9, 2023 deadline issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission for the collection of the cards ahead of the November 11 off-cycle governorship polls in the three States.

While 107,715 voter cards were awaiting collection in Kogi, no fewer than 134,000 had yet to be claimed by prospective voters in Imo State. However, the figure of unclaimed PVCs cards in Bayelsa State was unavailable.

The electoral commission has, however, said it will not extend the PVCs collection in the States and admonished registered voters not to delay in picking up their cards.

The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi and the Kogi State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Dr Gabriel Longpet, both affirmed in separate interviews that there was no going back on the October 9 d deadline.

They cautioned the concerned electorate against waiting till the last minute to collect their PVCs.

The INEC had fixed the governorship elections in the three States to November 11 in which 18 parties are fielding candidates.

At its regular meeting held on June 6, the commission approved the final list of candidates for the three off-cycle governorship elections and also uploaded it to its website and social media platforms.

The Kogi State REC, Longpet, also echoed Oyekanmi, stating that there would not be an extension of the time earlier scheduled for the collection of the voter cards.

“There will not be any extension of time as we had said that the collection is for four weeks since it is not a nationwide exercise and these are remnants of the cards previously provided for collection,’’ he explained.

On the number of the PVCs collected so far collected, the REC said, “From the daily reports sent to me, so far, 11,307 PVCs have been collected up to the 21st September, out of a total number of 119,022.We have two weeks to go.

“We have been broadcasting and urging people in the various local languages to go out and collect their PVCs. We have translated the jingles in Ebira, Igala, Okun, Nupe, and Hausa, in addition to English.”

Speaking on the situation in Imo State, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Professor Sylvia Agu, disclosed that INEC resumed the issuance of PVCs for the election on September 11 and that the exercise would continue till October 9.

“INEC still has about 134,000 uncollected PVCs in Imo piled in the 27 local government council secretariats of the State.

“I urge Imo residents to collect their PVCs at the INEC offices in their council areas, while those in Orlu Local Government Area should collect theirs at the State office in Owerri.

“Apart from the 27 local government area offices, INEC has also created some centres for PVC collection for Registration Areas that have more than 1,000 uncollected PVCs. Remember that PVCs cannot be collected by proxy and they must be exchanged with the Temporary Voter Cards,’’ she stated.

“INEC has gone a step further to gather the phone numbers of owners of uncollected PVCs in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi to send bulk SMS to them,’’ Agu added, assuring that the commission was fully prepared for the election.

She revealed that all non-sensitive materials had been received and would be distributed to the various Local Government areas appropriately. The commission’s Head of Department, Voter Education, Publicity, Gender and Inclusivity in Bayelsa, Mr Wilfred Ifogah, said the uncollected PVCs in its Yenagoa office were from the previous exercise.

He said people currently collecting their PVCs included those who registered newly, those who could not pick up their PVCs after they transferred their PVCs, and those who lost their voter cards.

Ifogah said, “When you talk about collected and uncollected PVCs in the State, why I don’t want to give those figures is that it won’t add up to anything because what we have are uncollected PVCs from the previous exercise. It’s not like they brought anything new.

‘’Moreso, the PVCs are not just for people who registered newly but it has to do with both those who registered newly and unable to pick them and those who requested for a reprint of their PVCs, and those who did transfer whose cards have come in.

“So, from the overall statistics, if we really want to know those who have collected, we have to wait for the end of the exercise to know those that have collected, who registered newly.

“’But right now, everyone picking involves those who registered newly, those who were unable to pick up their own when they did transfer and those who lost their PVCs. Right now, I don’t have an idea of the total uncollected PVCs.”

He, however, added that the commission would not extend the October 9 deadline for registration and collection of PVCs.

Punch /Oluwayemisi Owonikoko

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