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Reveals introduction of downloadable PVCs, dismisses claims of warehousing PVCs to favour party
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Joash Amupitan, has said that no matter the sophistication of the technology and logistics deployed during elections, it will be impossible to achieve credible polls if citizens remain detached, uninformed, cynical or completely uneducated about the power of their votes.
Amupitan made the disclosure while receiving the leadership of the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in his office in Abuja on Wednesday.
He said the commission could procure the most sophisticated Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines, upgrade the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) to international standards and map out the most efficient logistical routes for material deployment, but such technological and administrative achievements would amount to little without voter reorientation.
Amupitan, while lamenting the negative effects of disinformation on the conduct of elections, dismissed insinuations that the commission warehoused over 400,000 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to favour a particular party during the recent Ekiti State off-cycle governorship election.
The INEC chairman also disclosed that, under the Electoral Act 2026, the commission has introduced the use of downloadable PVCs, explaining that the innovation would require extensive voter education and public enlightenment.
Insisting that technology alone cannot improve elections, Amupitan said:
“When we look at the landscape of our nation today as we prepare for the 2027 general elections, it becomes immediately clear that INEC cannot build a robust democracy in isolation.
“We can purchase the finest BVAS machines, we can optimise the IReV Portal to international standards, and we can map out the most logistical routes for material deployment. But all of these technological and administrative triumphs mean nothing if the citizens remain detached, uninformed, cynical, or completely uneducated about the power of their votes.”
Appealing to the agency for support, he said:
“This is where the NOA comes in. While INEC is the umpire that sets up the field and manages the game, the NOA is the custodian of the values that make the players and the spectators respect the rules.
“You speak the languages of our people, you understand their local fears, and you know how to navigate the cultural nuances that shape public opinion. We still need to let the people know there are so many things they can do online in relation to their registration and even guides to voting.
“We have an app that you can use to locate your polling unit before election day so that you don’t need to begin roaming about looking for your polling unit. It is a loud signal that far more needs to be done in the area of voter education.
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“This is very intensive, deep-rooted voter education. And it proves that we cannot afford to wait until the eve of 2027 to start talking to our people. Let me also say that under the new Electoral Act 2026, they have introduced the use of what we call downloadable PVCs.
“For PVCs, this is an area that will need a lot of education.
“So downloadable, it’s not only PVCs that are downloadable. You must have obtained your PVC before. Maybe the PVC is lost, defaced or you can no longer read the details on it.
“But the voter must lodge a complaint. It’s not automatic. You must complain, and the complaint must be made 90 days before the election so that it will enable us to print a replacement card.”
Amupitan, who shed more light on the downloadable PVC initiative, said:
“The provision is flexible in that the moment you complain, you should be able to print your downloadable PVC for use. If you have not collected your PVC, that service will not be available.
“We are working on the technology that will make downloadable PVCs possible, which we hope to commence during the Osun State governorship election in August this year.”
He dismissed speculation that PVCs were being distributed to favour the APC, explaining:
“Even in the last election, you noticed a video that was going around saying that INEC had warehoused over 400,000 PVCs for a particular political party and that they were being shared and distributed.
“But under close and comprehensive scrutiny, it was discovered that what was being shared was not PVCs. They were party membership cards. But somebody decided to sit in the comfort of his room and come up with that type of mischief aimed at eroding people’s confidence in the vote.
“People who were ready to go and vote were saying that we had better sit down because our vote would not count. So that is part of the danger it poses.
“Together, INEC and NOA must rewrite this narrative. I don’t know what strategy you are going to put in place, but from the background I was given about you, you are a communication strategist. It is something that we probably need to work on and see how we can correct this.”
