The Independent National Electoral Commission INEC has said registration for permanent voters card will commences on Monday 28th June 2021.
Professor Mahmood Yakubu
Chairman, INEC who disclosed this while addressing journalist at a press conference in Abuja said the CVR could not recommence in 2020 due largely to the COVID-19 pandemic. In line with the general advise by health officials regarding events involving large groups of people, we considered it inauspicious to restart the CVR at the height of the pandemic.
He also said the Commission has decided to introduce a new voter registration equipment and technology.
The present generation of voter registration equipment, which the Commission introduced in 2011, is the Direct Data Capture Machine (DDCM). This is based on a laptop and a series of peripherals connected to it. In addition, it includes large powerpacks to power the laptops in the field.
He also hinted that the commission is building a new online registration portal that would enable new registrants to commence registration online and subsequently complete the capture of their biometric data at designated registration centres.
“Through the online portal, they can schedule their visits to the registration centres to suit their convenience. Above all, a CVR Locator is integrated into the new portal which will enable online registrants to locate the nearest registration centre available to them to complete their registration. Previously, registered voters who wished to transfer their voting locations, apply for replacement of their PVCs or correct their personal information had to appear physically at the registration centres.”
Speaking on the move to create Additional polling Units, the chairman said the existing ones were initially designed to cater for a projected 50million voters but presently serve over 84 million voters.Also, many of the Polling Units are inaccessible to voters, especially Persons with Disability (PWDs), and are not conducive to implementing the Commission’s election regulations, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have commenced a far-reaching programme of converting Voting Points
and Voting Point Settlements into full-fledged Polling Units and relocating
poorly situated Polling Units to better locations. The Commission needs
more time to complete this exercise, so that the new Polling Units will be
available for registrants to choose during the CVR exercise.”
The following categories of Nigerians are particularly encouraged
to seize the opportunity of the CVR in order to fulfil the important civic
responsibility of voting:
i. All Nigerians who are 18 years of age and have never been registered to
vote;
ii. Any registered voter who has had any issue during accreditation at
previous elections so that the Commission can rectify the problem;
iii. All registered voters who wish to transfer their voting locations from the
present one to another;
iv. All registered voters who have lost their PVCs or whose PVCs have been
defaced or damaged; and
V. All registered voters who wish to correct their information such as
misspellings of names, dates of birth etc.
