The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says
the alleged mop-up of permanent voter cards (PVCs) in the north is an “exercise
in futility”.
Festus Okoye, the INEC spokesperson, spoke on Sunday during
an interview on Channels Television.
Last week, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) alleged that some
politicians were buying PVCs with N2,000 in the northern region.
“Thousands, or possibly even millions of Northern voters,
particularly women, are being made to surrender their PVCs for a pittance, in
most instances not more than N2000 Naira. In some instances, they are told
their cards will be returned to them after they are processed for additional
payments as poverty relief. No cards are returned,” the northern elders had
said.
Speaking on the development, the INEC spokesperson said the
possibility of voting with acquired voter cards is next to impossible,
stressing that the act can only be used for voter suppression.
“There are two possibilities here. The first possibility is
for you to dispossess someone of his or her PVCs and get the person not to
vote, in order words, you are engaging in voter suppression,” he said.
“If you purchase someone’s PVC and the person does not vote,
what that means is that one vote is out, so you are suppressing the vote in
that particular constituency. That is one aspect.
“The second aspect of
it is that some politicians are very optimistic. They normally plan for the
rainy days, they are still thinking that there is a possibility that they can
beat the BVAS, which will be used for voter accreditation and authentication.
“I believe that the exercise will be futile. Anybody who is
purchasing PVCs is just engaging in an exercise in futility. The only thing the
person can do with that PVC is to make sure that the owner does not vote on
election day.
“But for you to come on election day to the polling unit
with a PVC belonging to someone else and you attempt to vote with it, it is
next to impossibility.
“The BVAS will not capture your fingerprint, it will not
capture your facials.”
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