It was colourful day in Osogbo on Saturday as the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, partnered with Power of PVC Ride, a Lagos-based organization, to create awareness for the people of Osun State on collection of their Permanent Voters Card.
The ride, which started from the State headquarters of INEC, was led by the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mutiu Agboke.
The team moved through strategic places in the State capital and engaged electorates on the need to have their PVCs ahead of the 2023 general elections. Some of the places visited include Ogo-Oluwa, Aregbe, Olaiya, Jaleoyemi, Ojo-Oba, Station Road, Old Garage, Oke-Fia and Alekunwodo.
Speaking with newsmen, Agboke said the road show was to let Osun electorates know that the PVCs are readily available. He said the Commision still have 408,196 uncollected PVCs in its custody.
“We realized that people have not been collecting their PVCs. So we deemed it fit to scale up the awareness. And unfortunately, we discovered that some unscrupulous elements are buying these cards from electorates. This means, were are not only telling them to go and collect their PVCs, we’re also educating them not to sell it. Look at it for example, in Osun State, we have 408,196 uncollected PVCs and between December 12 and 17, only 1,032 electorates have gone to collect their cards.” Agboke said.
Speaking on the preparedness of the Commision, the REC said the electoral umpire is fully prepared for the 2023 exercise. He said the Commision in Osun has also received over 5,000 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS.
“The Commision is fully prepared to the extent that we have taken delivery of over 5,000 BVAS. We’re also charging and configuring them and also, we’re training our staff on hoe it’s going to be perfectly handled.”
Agboke also assured that the security of the INEC State and local government offices are well protected against attacks. He called on people not to be deterred by the attacks recently witnessed.
Also speaking, the Convener of Power of PVC ride, Akorede Balogun said the advocacy was aimed at ensuring that registered voters have their PVCs to participate in the elections.
“We have been doing this since 2009. It’s a non-partisan advocacy. It’s important to let people know that registering is not enough, they must collect their PVCs and vote for a right candidate on the day of elections. This is the motive behind the ride.
The over two-hour ride was terminated at the INEC office.
