By our reporters
Across the states, there is currently an unprecedented passion among Nigerians for the ownership of the Permanent Voter Card (PVC), the card needed to vote during elections in the country.
Reports from many states indicate an upsurge in the number of people trooping to the registration centres to get registered so as to be able to vote in next year’s general elections.
Meanwhile, some have accused officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of being overwhelmed by the situation, with allegations from many states of attempts to disenfranchise some people.
By 2019, there were 84,004,084 registered voters, according to INEC. By the end of June this year, the commission noted that 11 million new voters had registered and had been added to the database. Political pundits have varied opinions about this sudden surge. Some adduced that because of bad governance, Nigerians want to take their destinies into their hands and henceforth get themselves more involved in determining who their leaders would be.
Here is the report of the situation of registration of voters in some states.
Ebonyi
In Ebonyi, visits to Abakaliki Local Government Area and the state office of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abakaliki showed unprecedented number of people waiting to get their PVCs. When our correspondent visited the INEC Office in Abakaliki a large number of people clustered outside the commission’s gate waiting to be registered. Chukwuma Ernest, who was among the people waiting to get registered, told our correspondent that he had visited the centre on two previous occasions, but was not lucky enough to be registered.
“Today is my third day here. The first day I came, we wrote our names. My number is 467. Hopefully it will get to my turn today. The way it’s done is that when you come, they will give you a paper to write down your name and get your number. They call you by the number. You will check your number, if you can stay you stay or you go and come back.”
Majority of those seeking to get registered were young people between the ages of 18 and 25. Investigation showed that the registration was going on in all the INEC offices across the 13 local government areas of the state.
Abia
Abia State ia also witnessing a massive voter registration revolution, ostensibly as a result of Mr. Peter Obi’s joining of the presidential race on the platform of Labour Party (LP). With the unprecedented zeal of people clamouring to have their PVCs, came with it some difficulties.
Like in some other states, people in parts of Abia are lamenting over their inability to get PVCs after wasting several hours at INEC offices. Some people complained that despite assurances given by officials of the commission to do everything possible to improve on the present situation, they still found it difficult to get registered. One of those who experienced difficulty in getting his PVC and who gave his name as Ude, however, commended INEC for extending the deadline for the registration exercise. He added that the extension of voters’ registration would equally halt political apathy and guarantee full participation of qualified citizens to decide on those who would mount the saddle of leadership in 2023.
Anambra
In Anambra, there have been some issues concerning the inability of the people to register and get their PVCs in various parts of the state. There were also issues of bribery where the staff of INEC allegedly demanded gratification to facilitate the registration processes of some of those who came to register. The commission, however, said it was already handling some of the issues. It said that it was committed to ensuring that the registration exercise was made much easier for the people.
The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Dr. Nkwachukwu Orji, said that the Commission has created additional 25 registration centres in the state to ease the difficulty being witnessed by new registrants and others who needed the services of the commission. Orji said that the move became necessary because of the surge in the number of those who wanted to obtain their PVCs in the ongoing continuous voters’ registration.
Cross River
Hundreds of prospective voters in Cross River State have cried out over undue delay in the on-going voters’ registration exercise. Checks by our correspondent showed that there are long queues at various registration centres within Calabar metropolis as a result of massive turn-out of people. Some of the prospective voters complained in chats with the reporter about the registration machines and attitude of INEC officers.
A prospective voter at INEC’s office along Eta Agbor Road in Calabar South, Sunday Okon, 23, said: “This is the second day I have come here to get my PVC and I have not collected it. And each day, I spend about five hours and they would tell me the machines were not enough and it took some hours to print out the temporary PVCs. But I would continue to come here till I get it because I want to vote in 2023.”
Another prospective voter at INEC’s office at Ikot Ishie, Calabar Municipal, Esther Akpan, said the registration officers were unfriendly and not guiding the people appropriately, adding that the exercise was too slow. She said sometimes, the officials attended to only half of the people that turned out to register on that day.
Esther suggested that INEC should increase their working hours and possibly recruit more ad hoc staff to be able to meet up with the upsurge.
Speaking on some of the challenges encountered so far, the Head Voter Education and Publicity, INEC Cross River State, Anthonia Nwobi, said: “Our main challenge is double registration by voters. Since our database has list of voters from 2010 till date, anybody that registers twice, the Automated Biometric Identification System removes the person’s latest registration during clean up. We are sensitising voters on it
“So, invalid registration is what happens when the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) is applied during clean up of the preliminary register before printing of the PVCs and it cleans off any double fingerprints it identifies.
“However, the registration officers are at their best and are now moving from ward to ward in collaboration with stakeholders to get people registered.”
Plateau
In Plateau State, most prospective voters have little information about where and how to register for the PVCs or collect their PVCs. Some who visited the nearest INEC office as instructed by officials came back disappointed because they could not access their cards while some were told to return to their electoral wards. It was gathered that there are millions of PVCS that have not been collected right from 2011 while some of the citizens claimed to have made efforts but couldn’t access their cards Our reporter, who visited the state INEC office at Miango Road Jos, noticed the upsurge in the number of young persons queuing under the sun and rain to register and get their PVCs.
It was learned that INEC has also increased the registration points in the state as people travel to their electoral wards to register. Some individuals and churches have also negotiated with INEC officials to bring the registration points closer to their vicinities for easy access by indigent persons. Head of Voters Education and Publicity of INEC, Plateau State Egwurube M. Otokpa said the commission is making frantic efforts to ensure all eligible voters are captured and get their PVCs to participate in the 2023 election.
Rivers
People living in Port Harcourt and other parts of Rivers State have shown an unusual interest in the registration for PVCs, unlike some months ago when there was apathy. To confirm their zeal for the PVC and willingness to partake in the 2023 general election, as at Friday, June 24, 2023, a total number of 3,396 residents had done their registration across the 23 local government areas of the state. The report was credited to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in the state capital. From the report, Port Harcourt City Local Government Area (PHALGA) had the highest figure (1,003), followed by Obio/Akpor (488) and the state INEC office (313).
Prospective voters said INEC in Port Harcourt and the neighbouring LGAs have shown commitment in ensuring that Rivers people were registered. The situation was different few days to the last deadline given by INEC for registration, where confusion pervaded the commission’s head office along Aba road, Port Harcourt.
Delta
Despite the announcement that the ongoing Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) had been extended by two months, registration centres in Delta State have continued to witness large numbers of persons seeking to get their permanent voters cards. At the Oshimili South Centre in Asaba, the queue of enthusiastic registrants keeps increasing by the minute.
However, Saturday Sun observed that the long queue came about because not only fresh registrants were visiting the centre. Other voters seeking a range of services such as replacement of damaged or lost PVC; transfer of PVC from one unit to another; update of information of voters, among other services, were also coming to the centres. Some of the registrants however said in spite of the frustration associated with the exercise, they were determined to see it through in order to vote during the 2023 general elections.
Gabriel Ordia, one of the registrants, told our correspondent that he was mobilising his friends who are mostly youths to come and be part of the exercise. Ordia stated that he had been denied the opportunity of registering in recent days because he did not arrive the centre on time to be registered before the commencement. He urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to further decentralise the system to the ward and unit levels, so as to reduce the crowd at the local government level. But addressing the concerns raised, the Public Relations Officer of INEC in Delta State, Mr. Bukola Ojeme, lamenting that Deltans were not acting on available information to make the exercise smooth.
Ojeme stated that the commission was making enormous progress, saying that as at June 27, 2022, 641,000 voters have been registered in the state.
Edo
In Edo State, residents are lamenting their inability to register for the Permanent Voters Cards to enable them exercise their franchise in the forthcoming 2023 general elections.
Some of the residents, who spoke with Saturday Sun at the Independent National Electoral Commission office in Oredo Local Government Area of the state, decried the slow pace of the exercise. One of the residents, Dr. Simon Adebayo, a 62 year-old man of Omega Fire Ministry Benin, said he was at the third INEC’s registration centre but was still unable to register.
“I am here to register because I lost my card but with the situation now, I might not be able to do it. I live in GRA, I went to two registration centres, but nothing was happening and I was directed to come here. When I got here, I discovered that those who came at 5 am have not been attended to, and they are still on number 20 out of the 70 names on the list for today’s scheduled registration. The exercise is frustrating, I paid N3, 000 to come here today and this is my fourth time of trying to get register. It seems they don’t want us to register but there is nothing we can do than to trust God that the best candidate would win,” he said. On his part, Polycap Okpara, another resident, who lost his card, lamented that he was at the centre as early as 5 am but by 1:30pm, he was not sure of being registered. Also speaking, Rosemary Ugiagbe, who has not been registered before, said she had been at the centre on two previous occasions but was not successful.
“I came here by 6 am and couldn’t get a number. They told me that they had gotten to number 70 and that I should wait for the next batch. I spent N1, 000 on transportation on each day”.
Meanwhile, an official of the commission, who craved anonymity, blamed the development on the residents, whom he said had not taken interest in the exercise that commenced since June last year. He said about 80 per cent of the people coming for registration are not only those whoHe assured that the Commission would continue to do its best to register voters.
Osun
Some residents of Osun State are still struggling to get their PVCs, as the July 16 governorship election date draws nearer.
Visits to some local government offices of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), showed that some people have been taking numbers as early as 6am and writing names as soon as INEC staff resume by 8am. Some people could not find their PVCs after waiting for about four to five hours at INEC office. At one of the INEC offices visited by our correspondent, one Apostle Adekunle Adekale, said: “Many of us have been here since 5am.
Many people have temporary cards, but the PVC is not there. We have gone to many places before they directed us here.” One Damola Akintade said: “It is absurd to ask five persons to be attending to 38 units.
“I was at the ward in the last five days distribution and only five persons were attending to in the 38 units. Till now, the crowd at the local government is even much and you can see that they could not find PVC of some people.” The spokesperson of INEC in the state, Oluwaseun Osimosu, said the commission has provided the necessary machinery to make the distribution easy.
Kwara
In Kwara State, Saturday Sun observed that voters were forced to wait under the tree and in the scorching sun at various registration centres in Ilorin West, Ilorin South, Ilorin East Irepodun and Offa local governments. Many Kwarans are experiencing difficulties in the process of registering for their PVCs.
This is despite assurances from INEC office in Kwara State that it had put adequate machinery in place to capture all eligible voters. Some of the prospective voters, who spoke with our reporter at the Omu Aran INEC office, said getting PVC had become an uphill task. Many of them lamented that they reported early at the INEC office, but were not attended to and had to leave in frustration. Those who failed to register online when the portal was opened for registration were directed to get forms from the office and fill manually. In Oke Oyi, the process of getting the form was difficult and only those who came early enough were attended to.
Gbenga Abioye, who described the process as “very frustrating”, narrated his experience: “I have been trying to get the form but they said it has finished. I wonder why the form is exhausted knowing they have a printing machine in there.
“I heard they distributed few forms but not all of them have registered. It has been frustrating. The procedures for new voters have not been helpful.”
Also, Ismaila Yusuf told Saturday Sun that he was not attended to because he came by 9am, which was too late, according to the officials. Many other residents were disgruntled at the process as they were locked out of the compound and made to sit outside the INEC office premises Ilorin, feeling very neglected and frustrated.
Others, who were there to get their biometrics done, also felt the pinch as some of them complained that INEC’s manpower was not enough, compared to the crowd that came out en masse to register. The Resident Electoral Commissioner, INEC, Mr. Garba Attahiru Madami, said more registration machines had been provided to hasten the PVC process.
Kogi
Hundreds of prospective voters in Kogi State have expressed frustrations at obtaining their PVCs as they troop out daily to the INEC registration centres in the state. Investigations revealed that the INEC in the state is in gross shortage of staff and materials to attend to the surging crowd that come out daily in different registration centres. Many have expressed frustrations after waiting for hours on the queue without anyone attending to them.
Saturday Sun gathered that those who did not have their PVCs and those who have just attained the voting age and wanted to do a fresh registration and those who wanted to do transfer of their PVCs from one location to the other were mostly affected. The reporter noted that people at the hinterland and riverine areas of the state were worse hit. In some cases, for days, no INEC officer was seen in those areas, while the people have resigned themselves to fate and have decided to go to their farms. The areas affected included some rural communities in Ibaji Bassa, Kotonkarfi and Dekina local government areas of the state, where the terrains are difficult to access, especially during this raining season.
Also, in some major towns, one or two INEC staff were seen attending to over 100 people. For example, in Sango axis of Odolu Quarters, Kabba in the Western Senatorial District, Iniuzomi quarter of Okene in the Central district and Ayegba Street in Idah in the Eastern Senatorial District, where our correspondent spoke to some people, the story was the same.
Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Prof James Apam, confirmed that INEC has challenges in accessing some communities in Ibaji Local Government area due to the terrain and that he has written to the headquarters to enable them obtain boat services to reach the affected areas. He said three machines have been deployed to Bassa Local Government Area of the state, adding that the communal crisis between Bassa Komu and Igbirra Mozum have seriously affected the registration of voters in the axis.