As the deadline for the registration of voters in the country ends on August 31, 2018, more than 112,032 persons who registered for Permanent Voters’ Cards, PVCs, are yet to collect their cards in Akwa Ibom State.
Answering questions in a privately owned radio station- Planet FM 101.1, Uyo, Don Etukudo, the Public Affairs Officer of Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Akwa Ibom State said voters have not collected the PVCs as before last weekend.
Etukudo who spoke under ‘’Community Views’’ on Saturday further said that of 127,196 PVCs, the commission has given 33,075 cards to eligible voters in the state.
He stated that officials of the commission had visited tertiary institutions, churches and mounted road shows to sensitise the voters to assist in registering more voters since the commencement of the execrcise on April 27, last year.
Commenting on giving PVCs to persons from Ukanafun local government area, he regretted that the tense security situation in the area particularly the abduction an official of INEC Office in Ukanafun by unknown gunmen compelled the commission to temporarily relocate the office to INEC Headquarters along Udo Udoma Avenue, Uyo.
The Public Affairs Officer, therefore, appealed to stakeholders in the area to assist some people affected by the crisis to collect and collect their PVCs in Uyo while those from the area who have not registered to go there and do so.
On complaints by one of the callers that some INEC officials adopt man-no-man attitude to help some people to easily register, Etukudo dispelled the allegation as a rumour, submitting that some outsiders not INEC staff capitalise on the closing date of the voters’ registration by photocopying and selling registration forms to unsuspecting members of the public.
He advised people who have not collected their PVCs to go to INEC offices in the local government headquarters nearer to them to collect such while those who are yet to register should take advantage of the exercise before the closing date to enable them to vote during the forthcoming general elections.
