Some voters in Jos, the capital of Plateau State, have voiced concerns ahead of the 2023 general elections about the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials’ inability to provide Permanent Voters Cards (PVC).
Voters claimed they had been going to the designated collection points, but INEC kept failing to give them their voter cards.
While some of the registration centers in Jos are empty, others are crowded with people waiting to pick up their PVCs.
“I came to pick up my PVC but I wasn’t able to collect,” said Shu’aibu Hussaini, a Jos resident. They said they hadn’t seen mine. This is my fifth visit, and I still haven’t succeeded. I couldn’t get mine or my two children’s. They would always tell me to come back the next day, but nothing would change. I’m sick of coming.”
“I came to collect my PVC but was told mine was not available,” said Abubakar Danlladi, another town resident. They informed me that some PVCs had yet to be delivered. They asked me to double-check if mine was still available. I’ll return because I really want to see the PVC. It is extremely important to me.
“Those who are responsible for the distribution of the cards are making the process difficult, and that is why we are finding it difficult to collect the cards. Everything would have been easier if they had organized the place,” said Muhammad Usman, a town resident.
Despite these issues, voters are hopeful that INEC will be able to locate and distribute all missing PVCs before the collection period ends.
INEC stated in December of last year that after January 15, 2023, the exercise will be returned to the Commission’s Local Government Offices until January 22, 2023.
A volunteer organization based in Jos has started mobilizing registered voters to pick up their PVCs at the designated locations so they can participate in the upcoming elections.
Thousands of registered voters have yet to choose their cards at the designated centers despite the localization of the election.
In light of this, a volunteer group in Jos is encouraging voters to pick up their PVCs so they can participate in the election by mobilizing them in the city’s major streets and markets.
The group contends that, given the importance of the cards in the electoral process, it is crucial to increase the amount of publicity surrounding the collection of PVCs, even though the commission had done so through a variety of channels.
