The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Edo will begin distributing about 373,030 uncollected permanent voter cards (PVCs) on May 27.

The state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Anugbum Onuoha, made this known on Thursday in Benin during a stakeholders’ meeting on the forthcoming Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise.

Mr Onuoha stated that the PVC collection exercise would be conducted side-by-side with the CVR exercise, which is also scheduled for May 27.

INEC chairman Mahmood Yakubu announced that the CVR exercise would begin in Edo and Ondo ahead of the governorship elections in the two states.

Mr Onuoha said that while the number of registered voters in Edo is 2,501,081, the collected PVC is 2,128,288, and the uncollected PVC stands at 373,030.

He said the CVR and the PVC collection would be a 10-day exercise from May 27 to June 5, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily, including weekends.

The REC explained that the exercise would be conducted in the 192 wards and the state headquarters of INEC in Edo.

He also disclosed that two officials drawn from the commission and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) would manage each registration centre.

However, Mr Onuoha appealed for the support of the media, civil society organisations (CSOs), traditional rulers, and religious leaders in encouraging voters to locate and pick up their PVCs.

According to him, the commission has published the final list of candidates for the Edo governorship election following the conclusion of the political parties’ primaries.

The Deputy Director, Voter Registry, INEC Abuja, Doris Kande-Wyom, who took stakeholders through CVR processes, appealed to them to mobilise prospective registrants for the exercise.

The meeting had the chairmen of political parties, religious leaders, traditional rulers, security agencies, and CSOs in attendance. 

(NAN)