4 million PVCs ready for distribution says INEC Chairman
The Chairman of the National Independent Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu, has disclosed that four million eligible voters are expected to collect their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) in the next few days.
Yakubu, who stated this while speaking at INEC Campus Outreach on “Youth Votes Count’’ at the University of Abuja, said the commission has taken delivery of four million Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) for distribution to the electorate registered in 2017.
Yakubu said the PVCs would be delivered to states for onward distribution to the owners in the next few days.
He said, “For the four million voters who registered between April and December 2017, all the cards have been printed and will be delivered to the state this weekend.
“So, by next week they will begin to collect their cards. For those who registered in first quarter of 2018 and those being captured in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR), I assure you that your cards will be available ahead of the 2019 general elections.’’
He also assured newly registered voters in Ekiti and Osun states that their PVCs would also be ready before the upcoming coming governorship elections in the states.
The chairman said tthat INEC had so far registered about 8 million new voters in the CVR.
He said, “We have registered about 4 million Nigerians in 2017; in the first quarter of 2018 we registered about 2.9 million and in the four weeks of the second quarter, as at yesterday (Wednesday), we registered about 1.1 million more.
“At the end of the exercise, we expect that about 11 million Nigerians will have been registered.”
He announced the creation of a registration centre at the University of Abuja campus and advised students and other residents close to the campus to make use of the centre by registering.
Yakubu also advised them to endeavour to collect their PVCs and take active part in the 2019 elections, pledging that their votes would count.
“When you collect your PVCs, please on February 16 and March 2, 2019, make sure you go out to vote.
“Let me give you an undertaking that in 2019, your votes will count, in 2019 only the votes cast by Nigerians will determine who wins,’’ he added.