Excitement, anger, apathy as INEC distributes PVCs at ward level

 

There were mixed feelings of excitement, anger and apathy across the country yesterday as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) kept to its pledge to devolve the distribution of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to the 8,809 registration areas/wards in the country.

Before now, collection of PVCs was done in the 774 local council offices of the commission. But the commission this time resolved to devolve the exercise to the 8,809 registration areas/wards from yesterday to Sunday, January 15, 2023.

INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye had announced the commencement of the exercise in a statement last Thursday, saying: “The devolution of PVC collection to the wards commences tomorrow 6th January 2023, and all validly registered voters who are yet to collect their PVCs are encouraged to seize the opportunity of the devolution to the wards to do so.

“After the January 15, 2023, the exercise will revert to the local government offices of the commission until January 22, 2023. All eligible and valid registrants can collect their PVCs from 9.00am to 3.00pm daily, including Saturdays and Sundays.

“All those that applied for replacement of lost, damaged or defaced PVCs can collect their PVCs at the registration area/wards during this period and the same thing applies to those that registered prior to the 2019 general election and are yet to collect their cards.

“The PVCs of those that applied for transfer are available for collection in the local governments and registration areas where they intend to vote and not in the state or local government where they carried out the transfer.

“The commission appreciates the patience and understanding of Nigerians who trooped to our various local government offices to collect their PVCs. In making the cards available for collection, the commission is also working to ensure that the process is simple and hitch-free for Nigerians.”

Despite the devolution of the exercise to the wards, findings by The Guardian yesterday indicated that many registered voters may not get their cards before election day as many eligible voters in the Federal Capital Territory were frustrated when they visited their wards to collect their PVCs.

When The Guardian visited the LEA Primary School, Dutse Alhaji Ward, in the Bwari Local Council, some registered voters expressed concern about the slow distribution of the cards.

A registered voter, David Fabian, said: “ I have been here since around 9am. And so far, I can tell you that I don’t even know what exactly is going on here because I don’t even know my fate. I have been in the queue for long.  The queue at a point was scattered due to agitation from the crowd and things have not been going well. I think the officials issuing the PVCs are too slow. For about 30 minutes, nobody has been given.

“They need to have more hands instead of having just only one person inside there attending to more than five people.  Maybe they should have more hands so that people can easily go to the polling unit and get their PVCs.”

He said despite the frustration, he would ensure that he gets his PVC to vote.

Another registered voter, Becky Pius, said she had been at the polling unit for many hours, noting that INEC must do everything to ensure that eligible voters are not disenfranchised.

She said: “I never thought that I was going to stand on this queue for a long time. I have been here since 8am. At first, the queue was going on well, they wrote down some names, but now, I don’t understand what is going on again. It’s as if some people are being favoured.

“I was expecting them to have more workers in there. Even when they don’t have more workers, at least they should make it specific for each person to come on a particular day. If you are for collection, you stand on this side, if you are for transfer, you stand on another side.”

She said only 30 persons had been able to collect their PVCs since the distribution started.

An INEC official at the polling unit, who pleaded anonymity, blamed the residents for the slow distribution. According to him, many people did not have their registration slips. “That is part of what is giving us challenge in distributing PVCs. By tomorrow, we will find better modalities. We are test running the process and we will look at how to improve,” he said.

In Kubwa, residents also trooped out en mass to collect their PVCs at the polling unit in LEA Primary School Kubwa Il. INEC officials were seen working frantically to ensure the people get their PVCs. However, some residents like Ishola Ade, who spoke with The Guardian complained about what he described as ‘unnecessary delay’ in the distribution.

“I have been here since morning, the process is slow. They delay people unnecessarily. I hope they do more to do things on time,” he said.

Another resident, Mathew Adeola complained about organisation of the process: “There is no organisation at all. There are two windows the officials are using. They are supposed to make use of one for collecting, and the other for distributing but they use both for the same thing thereby making the whole place to look rowdy. We are so careful in case there is a pickpocket around.”

On her part, Ade Eze expressed apprehension over the absence of security agents at the collection points.

“There is supposed to be the presence of security around the area. Street boys are around already sending threats that are influenced by party sentiments. The presence of police will curtail their excesses and put them in check,” she said.

Ejiro Efe, however, applauded INEC for keeping to its promise of distributing the PVCs at the ward level.

She said: “I am so happy to be present to collect my PVC. This year is a crucial year in our country. We need to come out and vote for the right people to be in power. Though the distribution is bedevilled with little delay, it doesn’t mean we should paint INEC badly. There is room for improvement. I challenge Nigerian youths to come out and vote. Nigeria must be better. Your vote will count. Come out Nigeria youths.”

The situation was different at the Garki Area 10 Ward, as INEC officials were seen waiting for eligible voters to come and collect their cards.

An official of INEC who spoke with The Guardian said the turn out had been low. “Only those who did double registration are having issues getting their cards. There are no challenges so far, aside the low turnout,” she said.

In Kaduna State, there was high turnout of registered voters even as some volunteer groups deployed their members to the wards to frustrate the activities of buyers of voter cards.

At the various wards in Kaduna North, South and Central Zones, registered voters were seen on queues awaiting collection of their PVCs, amidst complaints by some people of inability to find their names on the INEC lists.

Scores of registered voters were seen at the Magaji Gari Ward of Kaduna Central, where those whose names were found on the registered voters lists of INEC received their PVCs.

The President of the Arewa Defence League (ADL), Alhaji Murtala Abubakar, decried the presence of unpatriotic Nigerians who were going about to lure registered voters to give them their PVCs with a promise to give them grants. “We have deployed our volunteered members to keep their eyes at the various collection points to frustrate the activities of these men. So far so good, INEC has embarked on public enlightenment and some civil society organisations did the same thing. With these concerted efforts, we believe the collection of the PVCs will be hitch-free today”.

The Secretary General of the Christians Association of Nigeria (CAN), Elder Sunday Oibe said: “Most of our people are complaining that some of them are finding it difficult to find their names on INEC register of voters. Some of them thought that it would be a continuous exercise but I told them that there was sufficient advert by INEC concerning collection of PVCs

“On the whole, INEC should ensure that as many people who have already collected their PVCs, but are trying to relocate to other places, because there would restriction of movement on days of elections, are given the opportunity to vote. Otherwise, many of them would be disenfranchised.”

In Imo, the exercise witnessed low turnout apparently due to the insecurity in some parts of the state. The Guardian went round some wards in Owerri, the state capital, to witness the exercise and discovered that very few people came out to collect their PVCs.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Prof. Sylvia Agu, said there were 300, 000 uncollected cards in the vaults of the commission from the previous distribution (2021 to December 2022). Asked to give update on the PVCs collected so far, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the commission in the state, Dr. Chinenye Chijioke-Osuji, simply replied: “I’m yet to compile the recent figures, please. Hiccups are low turnout and insecurity.”

A registered voter who went to collect his card in one of the wards, Onwuamalam, expressed regret that his PVC was not there, prompting the officials to give him incidence form to fill.

“I was given an incidence form to fill because my card was not there despite that I registered,” he said.

There was also low turnout of registered voters at the various wards in Ado- Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital.

This was despite the continuous announcements on Ekiti local radio stations and television stations by the commission asking registered voters to go to their wards to pick their PVCs.

When The Guardian visited Ward 8 in Ereguru area, Ward 1 in Idofin, Ward 4 in Ijigbo and Ward 3 in Idolofin areas in the state capital, a few registered voters were seen coming to collect their cards. Some staff of the commission were sitting idle waiting for registered voters to come and collect their PVCs.

Some voters seen at the wards praised the commission for making the process of collection of the cards seamless, saying that they did not need to travel before picking their PVCs.

The residents who spoke in confidence said it took them less than five minutes to pick up the cards, while some said they were unable to collect their cards because of wrong information supplied to INEC staff.

The Head of Voter Education/Publicity of the commission in the state, Mr. Temitope Akanmu, in a telephone chat with The Guardian, said that INEC expected the voters to troop out and pick their PVCs, maintaning that the commission has made the collection less cumbersome.

Akanmu, however, said the turnout of voters at the collection points was very impressive, advising prospective voters to take advantage of the window of collection and pick up their PVCs.

In Anambra State, many registered voters trooped out in various wards to collect their PVCs. It was discovered that most of the callers at the venues were people who were unable to pick their PVCs from the commission’s local council offices.

At the Ukwu Orji, Government House, Ward 8, comprising Agu Awka, Ifite and Government House Area, the process was seamless.

Mrs. Blessing Nwosu said all the people who could present their duplicate copy at place of registration had no problem. “I took my time, waiting patiently. Then I mentioned my name, the INEC staff checked through the pack of cards arranged alphabetically and behold she handed over my PVC to me. I am very happy,” she said.

At a ward in Okpuno, Awka South Local Council, many people expressed joy that their PVCs were available for collection.

Anthony Ugorh, while displaying his card, said: “I will cast my vote for my notable candidate in the general election.”

However, at Nnobi, a visibly angry man who would not give his name, said: “I won’t collect it. Politicians don’t remember us. I won’t go there to waste my time standing in the sun. I am highly disappointed, after going to the local council office and searching without trace of my PVC, how am I even sure that it is now available.”

But Mr. Gabriel Onuwa, who described himself a concerned citizen, advised people to stop wishing, but to go and get their PVCs.

“I encourage family members, friends and neighbours to go and get theirs. Time is running out.”

An INEC official at one of the centres who declined to give her name said: “You can see that everybody is busy attending to the registered voters. We are doing our best to sort out the PVCs.”

In Akure, the Ondo State capital, registered voters decried poor organisation of the exercise.

In some wards, The Guardian gathered that most of the registered voters obtained their PVCs after waiting for about three to four hours.

At Ward 3, Gbogi in Akure South Local Council, the prospective voters, mostly youths who in their numbers besieged the venue to obtain their PVCs, lamented that the INEC personnel who were on ground were insufficient to attend to those at the venue.

One of the youths, Favour Adedayo, said: “I came here with my girlfriend since 9:00 am, but we could not get our PVCs until some minutes past 1:00 pm.

The arrangement of the whole process is very poor. How can just two people attend to about 1,000 people? It is just not normal.”

Another prospective voter, Sunday Olamona, said: “When they started the process, they told us that it would be better at the ward level, but it is quite unfortunate that we are going through the same experience we had at INEC office on Oda Road.”

Other people expressed anger at the inability of INEC personnel to explain why their names were missing on the list.

At ward 9, Oba-Ile, Akure North Local Council, a registered voter, Bosede Akinkunmi, explained that despite assurances at the INEC office in Iju that the exercise would be seamless at the ward level, the situation had been stressful.

“This is so frustrating. How do you just embark on an exercise of this magnitude without proper arrangement? The officials should design a way to make the process hitch-free.”

In Osun State, though the turnout for the exercise was low across the wards, according to INEC officials, the exercise was seamless.

An INEC official who spoke to our correspondent under the condition of anonymity at the Osogbo Local Council office of the commission, said the only challenge facing the collection was double registration, which the commission is tackling headlong.

Although the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Oyo State, Dr. Adeniran Rahmon Tella, had announced the commencement of the exercise, The Guardian observed that many residents of the state were not aware of it. However, the turnout was considerable in Olodo Egbeda Local Council as well as in Ojoo and Mokola.

Most of the voters there said they were determined to vote for their preferred candidates, especially in the presidential and governorship elections.

At Ward 9 in Olodo, it was observed that only a few people came out to collect their cards.