At a press briefing, INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Francis Ezeonu, said the figure excluded those who had applied for a review, transfer of polling units and replacement of permanent voter cards (PVCs) as of June 27.

He said that in the first two-quarters of the exercise, which lasted from June to December 2021, the state registered 16,511, out of which 7,145 (43 per cent) were invalid due to double registration.

However, Mr Ezeonu said that following popular demand, the voter registration exercise, which should have ended on June 30, had been extended until further notice.

He said other windows for review, transfer of polling units, and replacement of lost, defaced or broken PVCs were still open online.

“Contrary to the rumours doing the rounds, PVC does not expire.

“If you have lost your PVC, be honest enough to say so rather than attempting a fresh registration, as that will be fruitless.

“You are also reminded that it is an electoral offence to attempt multiple registrations,” he said.

The REC urged those who had earlier registered to visit their local government areas for the collection of their PVCs.

(NAN)