82, 897 PVCs ready for collection in Niger –INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission says 82, 897 Permanent Voter’s Cards were ready for collection across the 25 Local Government Areas of Niger State.
Prof. Sam Egwu, the state’s INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, stated this while speaking at a stakeholder’s meeting in Minna on Friday.
Egwu said the voters were registered in the INEC Continuous Voter Registration in the state in 2017.
He said 26, 234 voters were registered in the first quarter of the exercise, while 32, 718 and 23, 945 voters were registered in the second and third quarter respectively.
Egwu urged electorate in the state who had registered to go to their respective LGAs where they were registered to collect their personally and not by proxy.
He explained that the essence of the meeting was to pass the information to the stakeholders so they can disseminate it to the general public.
He said: “The PVCs for 2017 Continuous Voter’s Registration are 82, 897 and they are ready for collection by Monday, May 21.
“It is in the Constitution and in the Electoral Act that INEC must continuously register voters, new ones that turned 18 and those who are changing residence.
“Those who have lost their PVCs and those whose PVCs have been defaced.”
He urged communities leaders and individuals with credible information of those that have died to report to INEC office close to them so their names can be remove from the voter’s register.
He said: “It is our responsibility to update the voter’s register to ensure that it is current, those that are dead are removed and those that turned 18 are registered to enable them vote.
“In this country, we have a law that you must be 18 before you will be registered and allow to vote, underage registration is an electoral offence and the guilty will be prosecuted.”