Politics
INEC Chairman Reacts To Bola Tinubu’s Claim Of Expired PVCs
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has reacted to the claim that the current Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) has expired.
www.tracknews.ng earlier reported that presidential aspirant, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu while speaking to some party women leaders in Abuja on Tuesday, claimed that the current voter cards have expired.
Reacting to the claim, INEC Chairman spokesman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, denied the statement credited to the former Lagos state governor, saying that the current PVCs are valid.
He revealed that a PVC doesn’t have an expiry date, advising Nigerians who have obtained their PVCs to keep them and those whose cards were missing or defaced could renew them.
Oyekanmi, however, stated that double registration is an offence under the law and anyone caught will be severely punished.
He advised eligible Nigerians that haven’t registered for their PVCs to do so in the ongoing Continuous Voter’s Registration (CVR) exercise.
He said: “A PVC does not have an expiry date on it, therefore, it does not expire. As long as the security chip on it is not damaged, it remains valid. But if the chip is damaged, the holder can apply for a replacement.
“Nigerians who already have their Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) do not need to register again. In fact, double registration is an offence under our laws.
“Eligible Nigerians are entitled to register only once. Once a name appears in the national register of voters, it stays there permanently.
“One of the very few instances where a name could be removed from the register is if there is strong and verifiable proof that the person bearing the name has died.”
Also speaking, the Chief Technical Adviser to the INEC Chairman, Prof. Bolade Eyinla, said that the information released by Asiwaju Tinubu is incorrect and misleading.
He said those who have registered for election do not need to do so again because their cards are valid for future elections.
However, Eyinla warned those who have registered not to register again because that will lead to double registration, which is punishable under the law.
“This information is not correct. The PVC issued to all previously registered voters remains valid. This kind of statement will certainly push eligible voters to register more than once thereby creating the problem of double and multiple registrations,” he said.