INEC Issues Warning To Nigerians Without PVCs Ahead Of Polls

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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a stern warning to Nigerians without permanent voter cards.

INEC warned Nigerians without Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to stay away from polling units on Election Day because only those with PVCs would be allowed to vote.

The commission’s Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye issued the warning on Thursday in Abuja when he received the IT facilities from Community Life Project (CLP) and Ford Foundation in support of the INEC Citizens Contact Centre (ICCC).

According to him, no other means of identification would be used on Election Day, other than the PVC, noting that INEC remained committed to the use Bimadal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for voters’ accreditation and uploading of election results to its Result Viewing Portal (IReV).

Okoye submitted that “As Nigerians go to the polling units on Election Day, we want to point out that it is a mandatory provision of the Electoral Act that every citizen who wants to vote in the coming election must have a PVC.

“It is a mandatory requirement of Section 47, subsection 1 of the Electoral Act.

“So, individuals that do not have the PVC are not required to approach any of our polling units.

“No individual is permitted to go to the polling units and provide any other means of identification other than the PVC.”

The INEC commissioner also cautioned election observer groups and fellow citizens that only INEC has the legal right to announce election results.

He stated that “No media organisation, no individual, no citizen, no domestic or international election observer is permitted under the condition or under the law to announce election results.

“As some of you are aware, the chairman of INEC is the Electoral Commissioner for the whole of the Federation and the Returning Officer for the presidential election.

“So, only the chairman of the commission is permitted by the constitution and the Electoral Act to announce the presidential results.

“Any other person can be appointed by the commission to announce any other level of election.”