Party Warns Administrative Delays Could Disenfranchise Newly Registered Voters
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately publish a clear nationwide timetable for the production, distribution and collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, on Friday, the party said Nigerians who successfully completed voter registration should have certainty about when and where they can collect their PVCs.
The ADC warned that delays in making the cards available could disenfranchise registered voters ahead of the general election.
“You cannot register Nigerians to vote and then make them run from office to office searching for the card that enables them to exercise that right,” the party said.
The party urged INEC to publish, state by state, the number of newly registered voters, PVCs produced and distributed, outstanding cards and designated collection centres.
It also called for intensified public information campaigns and decentralised collection points where practicable, arguing that distance, bureaucracy and poor communication should not prevent citizens from participating in elections.
The ADC said the issue was central to the credibility of the electoral process, urging INEC to resolve it before the election period rather than resort to last-minute measures.
The party added that it would mobilise its structures nationwide to monitor PVC distribution and document complaints from registered voters who are unable to obtain their cards.
“We do not want an election-eve scramble, excuses or emergency promises. INEC has the opportunity to resolve this matter now, transparently and comprehensively,” the party said.
The ADC stressed that every PVC unnecessarily withheld could put a citizen’s constitutional right to vote at risk.